UNRWA's
Grandi
Says Nahr
al-Bared Glass
Half Full, On
Gaza &
Tyre
Protests
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
March 9 --
While Filippo
Grandi of
UNRWA spoke on
Friday of
the need for
more
resources,
particularly
from Brazil,
Russia, India,
China and
South Africa,
Inner City
Press asked
Grandi about
UNRWA's
own
performance. Video
here, from
Minute 39:20
Specifically,
Inner
City Press
asked about
protests and
sit-ins
against UNRWA
in Gaza,
the lagging in
Nahr al-Bared,
and alleged
negligence by
the UNRWA
clinic in
Tyre, a topic
Inner City
Press asked
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon's
spokesperson
about on
February 23.
Grandi
said that
UNRWA lacks
money for its
humanitarian
programs in
Gaza, now that
attacks like
Operation Cast
Lead are no
longer in the
news. But
shouldn't
these program
be a priority,
for the Saudi
money Grandi
also bragged
about?
On
Nahr al-Bared,
Grandi said
never has the
UN worked on a
project this
large, $300
million. (The
Capital Master
Plan, with its
growing cost
overruns,
is larger.) He
said that the
Lebanese Prime
Minister
reiterated his
commitment two
weeks ago. But
what about
access
restrictions,
and
putting
military and
naval assets
inside the
camp?
On
the clinic,
Grandi said
"We cannot
meet all the
needs...
unfortunately
one
person died."
He said, "you
picked some
issues where
out
own
beneficiaries
protest us,
it's the fate
of the care
giver." He
said there is
an
investigation.
Here is the transcript,
including
after-inserted
answer, of
February 23:
Inner
City
Press: I think
you may have
“if asked” on
this — there
was, described
as looting or
a riot of an
UNRWA facility
in Tyre,
which was
accused of not
providing a
letter of
referral to a
Lebanese
woman. This
took place in
the last two
days. Pretty
big protest of
a UN facility
in Lebanon, I
am wondering,
what does
UNRWA say of
the
allegation
that they
didn’t perform
their job?
Deputy
Spokesperson:
I’ll have to
check on that
for you,
Matthew, I
don’t
have anything
on that.
[The
Deputy
Spokesperson
later reported
UNRWA’s
comments on
the
incident:
The
death
of Nisreen
Krayyem is
very
regrettable.
The death was
caused
by the lack of
available
respirators in
Tyre and Saida
areas when the
patient’s case
deteriorated.
The only
available
respirator was
secured in
Beirut after
several
contacts were
made by
UNRWA’s
doctors, the
hospitals and
the patient’s
family. The
patient was
then
transported by
ambulance from
the Italian
hospital in
Tyre,
where she was
given
first-aid
treatment, to
Rassoul Aazam
hospital in
Beirut, but
shortly after
her arrival,
she passed
away. Rassoul
Aazam is still
investigating
the case to
establish the
cause of the
death. As a
Lebanese
married to a
Palestinian,
Nisreen
Krayyem did
not need a
hospital
referral from
UNRWA to enter
the hospital,
but
since this
category of
persons falls
under the
joint
responsibility
of UNRWA and
the Ministry
of Public
Health, the
Agency did its
best
to assist her
in finding a
respirator in
hospital.
UNRWA
assists
Lebanese
married to
Palestinians,
or
Palestinians
who are
naturalized
Lebanese, with
free-of-charge
primary health
care,
partial
coverage in
secondary
health care
where the
Agency pays
the
difference of
the Ministry
of Public
Health rate,
whilst in
tertiary
health care,
the Ministry
of Public
Health rate is
more
advantageous
than UNRWA’s
coverage.]
So
what about the
investigation?
Watch this
site.
, 
