Antonio Guterres appoints former French minister to head review of UNRWA

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has appointed former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna to head an independent review of the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) for Palestinian Refugees.

The review, which comes after allegations by Israel that 12 UNRWA employees were involved in the Hamas-led attack on October 7th, will be done with three human rights and research organisations based in Sweden, Norway and Denmark. More than a dozen countries led by the United States and Germany have suspended their funding of UNRWA, with the Agency warning that it would have to suspend operations by the end of the month should funding not be resumed.

In an effort to address the allegations that go to the heart of UNRWA’s neutrality, the UN Chief has charged the former French Foreign Minister and three research organisations with identifying the mechanisms currently in place at UNRWA to ensure neutrality, to respond to any breaches and to assess whether those mechanisms and procedures are adequate and fit for purpose.

They are tasked with making recommendations for the improvement and strengthening of the said mechanisms or for the creation of new procedures that would better fit the Agency’s purpose. An interim report is due in late March with a final report expected before the end of April.

Source: SABC

In other news – Video of Boity not being noticed at the Grammy Awards leaves Mzansi in stitches

Popular Mzansi rapper, media personality, and businesswoman, Boity Thulo trended on social media on Monday, 5 February morning when her photographer struggled to take a photo of her at the Grammys.

In the video shared by a social media user, the rapper is seen bumping into Hollywood stars and appears to be apologizing while trying to take a photo. Read more