Devex Newswire: Israel-Hamas conflict deepens humanitarian crisis

While development eyes were supposed to be fixed on the World Bank-International Monetary Fund annual meetings in Marrakech, Morocco, much of the focus has shifted to the situation escalating in the Middle East. What does it all mean for humanitarian aid? Also in today’s edition: Multilateral bankers meet with finance ministers in Morocco, we speak to Lisa Nandy — the U.K.’s new shadow international development minister — and how U.K. aid cuts impact NGOs. What does it mean for aid? The renewed conflict around the Gaza Strip — which houses over 2 million people, including 1.7 million Palestinian refugees — is likely to have major impacts for humanitarian aid, United Nations agencies have said. Fighting erupted on Saturday when Hamas, the militant organization that has ruled Gaza since 2007, fired thousands of rockets at Israel and advanced into its territory, killing more than 900 people and taking over 100 people hostage. In response, Israel declared war on Hamas and launched attacks on Gaza that have killed more than 700 Palestinians. On Monday, Israel ordered a complete siege on Gaza — a blockade that would mean “no electricity, food, or fuel,” stated Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. The U.N. aired concerns about the impact of the siege on civilians, with its Secretary-General António Guterres saying he was “deeply distressed” by Israel’s announcement. UNRWA, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, which has more than 13,000 staff on the ground in Gaza, says it is currently sheltering 137,000 individuals who are displaced, and disruptions to food aid have affected almost 113,000 families. Guterres appealed to the Israeli government and Hamas militants to allow delivery of lifesaving humanitarian aid into Gaza: “I urge all sides and the relevant parties to allow the United Nations access to deliver urgent humanitarian assistance to Palestinian civilians trapped and helpless in the Gaza Strip,” he told reporters. Israeli missiles struck health facilities, high-rise residential towers, a mosque, and two schools used by UNRWA to shelter families displaced by the conflict, Guterres said. Hamas threatened to execute hostages if Israel attacks “without prior warning” to people sheltering in their homes. Guterres delivered a stinging condemnation of the “abhorrent” attacks by Hamas, saying that while “I recognize the legitimate grievances of the Palestinian people … nothing can justify these acts of terror and the killing, maiming and abduction of civilians.” He also said he recognized “Israel’s legitimate security concerns,” but insisted that Israel’s military operations “must be conducted in strict accordance with international humanitarian law.” But while Guterres has focused on the well-being of civilians, it looks far from clear that this approach will be met with an increase in humanitarian funding, with an apparent lack of consensus over the correct response among international powers. The U.N. Security Council has not reached a clear position on the violence, while the U.S. and its allies have issued a joint statement supporting the Israeli position. The U.S. looks likely to be hampered in any response by deadlock in its Congress, while other powers seem as likely to reduce aid. Meanwhile, several international NGOs have launched emergency public appeals. Devex will track donations to understand who is providing funding, and delivering aid. Wanted: an EU policy on funding for Palestine Speaking of other Western powers, foreign affairs ministers from European Union countries will hold a video call today to discuss “the situation in Israel and in the region,” amid a range of views over how to react. The burning question Monday was whether the European Commission would halt its funding to Palestinians, though a straight answer was hard to come by. The Hungarian commissioner in Brussels, Olivér Várhelyi, who is responsible for policy in the bloc’s neighborhood and some of the EU funding to the Middle East, was adamant that “there can be no business as usual” following the large-scale attack. “As the biggest donor of the Palestinians, the European Commission is putting its full development portfolio under review, worth a total of EUR 691m,” he tweeted Monday, adding that “all payments” were now “immediately suspended.” That drew an angry response from aid groups like Oxfam who argued that “suspending aid will be a collective punishment jeopardizing the lives of countless Palestinians.” It also prompted a tweet from Várhelyi’s colleague, Janez Lenarčič, who is responsible for EU humanitarian aid. Lenarčič wrote that “EU humanitarian aid to #Palestinians in need will continue as long as needed.” Hours later, the European Commission clarified that it would conduct an “urgent review” of its assistance for the Palestinian population, but that “as there were no payments foreseen, there will be no suspension of payments.” Then the bloc’s top foreign affairs official added to the confusion by saying that the commission “will not suspend the due payments.” EU states are hardly more united: Germany and Austria both announced they would suspend aid to Palestinians, whereas Ireland and Belgium have said their support will continue. Officials in Brussels often tout the need for Europe to speak with one voice in international affairs, but as so often with sensitive topics, EU member states often decide for themselves. Meeting in Marrakech Much of the action at the World Bank-IMF meetings starts today, with the World Bank’s slate of programming including discussions around poverty reduction and the digital future. IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva kicked off this year's meetings with a nod to Africa: “We can’t have [a] prosperous world without a prosperous Africa.” The fact that the international financial institutions are holding the meetings in Africa for the first time since 1973 is “substantively and symbolically important,” she added during the civil society town hall meeting held Monday afternoon. Among the attendees Devex Managing Editor Anna Gawel met yesterday in Marrakech, most were catching some of the IMF offerings or meeting up with colleagues. Any damage from last month’s earthquake is near impossible to find, although the rural areas of the Atlas Mountains paint a very different picture. But in Marrakech, every once in a while you overhear talk not of the earthquake, but of the war between Israel and Hamas, and what it portends for the region — a conflict that will only add to the ominous financial outlook set to dominate talks this week, from rising interest rates, to debt defaults, to global north-global south tensions. + Check out our page dedicated to our coverage and analysis of the World Bank annual meetings. Nandy’s Labour World development leaders want the United Kingdom to become “a reliable partner” again, rather than reverse deep spending cuts or restore a separate aid department, a key figure in the country’s opposition Labour Party said, as her party gears up for likely election victory. In her first interview as Labour’s new shadow international development minister, Lisa Nandy refused to commit to returning the U.K. to spending 0.7% of gross national income on aid within five years, telling our U.K. Correspondent Rob Merrick: “I can't make that commitment, it just wouldn't be honest.” Nandy, appointed to the role last month, also suggested Labour will not bring back a separate aid department if reforms by current International Development Minister Andrew Mitchell to give development greater autonomy within the merged Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office prove successful. “We’ve watched with interest what Andrew Mitchell has been doing to repair some of the damage that was done,” she tells Rob. “It remains to be seen whether the structural changes that he’s made are sufficient to really deliver.” She acknowledged that not returning to 0.7% of GNI will “disappoint” some people, but says: “That’s not the sense I’ve got from people working in international development, either here or across the world.” Read: Labour’s new development chief lays out her vision for UK aid + Check out our page to get the latest news and analysis on FCDO and the U.K. aid sector. Bottom line Those U.K. cuts have been devastating for some NGOs. CARE International UK filed new financial statements showing how the government’s aid reduction cost almost half its income — and at one point left it facing uncertainty over whether it would survive. CARE, a poverty reduction charity primarily focused on women and girls, had been one of the U.K.’s largest INGOs. But its latest accounts, filed five months late last week, show a drop in income to £38.6 million in financial year 2022 from £62.7 million a year earlier — a fall of 38.5%. The accounts indicated that for the preceding two years there had been “material uncertainty” over the charity’s ability to continue as a going concern — in other words, its ability to keep operating — after a sharp drop in funding from FCDO. CARE is far from the only INGO affected by U.K. aid cuts. In 2022, FCDO also pressed pause on all new funding as it wrestled with a Home Office raid on its coffers to pay for an influx of refugees. Much of that spending cut was passed on directly to INGOs. Read: How UK aid cuts cost one major INGO almost half its income (Pro) + Not a Devex Pro member yet? Start your 15-day free trial of Pro today to unlock the piece and all our exclusive reporting and analysis. In other news The U.N. Population Fund urged more countries to acknowledge the impact of the climate crisis on women and girls, noting that only a third of climate plans include essential sexual, maternal, and newborn health services. [The Guardian] The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is giving $40 million to advance mRNA research and manufacturing, aiming to bolster drug and vaccine supplies in lower-income nations with a focus on combating diseases like malaria, TB, and Lassa fever. [Bloomberg] Following a 6.3 magnitude earthquake in northwest Afghanistan that claimed over 2,000 lives, the U.N. humanitarian coordinator has authorized a $5 million emergency allocation from the Afghanistan Humanitarian Fund. 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