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UNRWA employees strike in Gaza, Jerusalem

Xinhua, October 5, 2016 Adjust font size:

Offices of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) in Gaza and Jerusalem were shut down for several hours on Wednesday after a strike staged by UNRWA employees protesting decisions to cut down services for Palestinian refugees.

Dozens of employees staged a sit in in front of their offices in East Jerusalem and Gaza. The employees union said in an emailed press release that they demand stopping the decrease of services to Palestinian refugees and demand increase in their salaries.

The UNRWA announced that its services in the health, education and other vital sectors will remain open in spite of the strike.

It had called on the employees "to continue dialogue away from strikes, which if escalated into an open strike would have a large negative impact on the refugees that could be considered collective punishment against them."

The UNRWA has been warning of a financial deficit but said that it won't decrease its services in it's operation areas in the region, including the Gaza Strip, Wes Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. Endit