Editorial: Le Monde

• Israel's accusations against UNRWA staff in Gaza for involvement in the massacre of Israeli civilians are severe and threaten the reputation and credibility of the UN agency.
• Israel's harsh retaliation to the incident, coupled with the ongoing health and food crisis in Gaza, has resulted in an unprecedented number of Palestinian victims.
• The already tense relations between the UN and Israel have been exacerbated by these accusations, with Israel accusing the UN Secretary General of bias.
• Israel views the existence of UNRWA as illegitimate, arguing that it artificially prolongs one of the main contentious issues of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: the fate of the refugees.
• The suspension of UNRWA funding by the United States in response to these accusations poses a dilemma given the current living conditions of Palestinians in Gaza.

Conclusion: Overall, this crisis evidences the fraught tension between the need to uphold legitimacy and accountability within international institutions, and the challenge of effectively responding to humanitarian needs in conflict situations such as Gaza.

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