Speaking during the signing ceremony, Peter Ford, the
representative of UNRWA’s Commissioner General, said that 12,000 refugees were
still waiting in the Gaza Strip for rebuilding their homes which were destroyed
by the Israeli offensive on the Palestinian territory during December 2008 and
January 2009.
“This generous donation should enable UNRWA to make a real
difference to the lives of hundreds of families,” Ford said.
However, he noted that the pace of Israeli approval for UN
projects in the besieged Palestinian territory would have to increase
considerably for this to happen.
“If the Libyans have secured an increase in the amounts of
construction materials being allowed to enter Gaza, backed up by large funds to
procure those materials, then that is a significant and very welcome
achievement, for which they deserve our sincere thanks,” Ford said.
An Israeli, who has been arrested and imprisoned in Libya
for the past five months, arrived in Israel on Monday after being freed in a
complicated deal that reportedly involved an Israeli permission for a
Libyan-sponsored ship to break the blockade imposed on the Gaza Strip for the
last three years.
