A Palestinian woman walks in front of the entrance of the UNRWA-run University College for Educational Science Ramallah city in the occupied West Bank on Jan 29, 2024. (PHOTO / AFP)

CAIRO/AMMAN - UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi stressed on Monday the necessity to keep funding the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).

During a phone conversation, they also discussed the pivotal role played by the UN and its various organizations in providing support and relief to the people in the war-torn Gaza Strip, the Egyptian presidency said in a statement.

Sisi and Guterres said continuing funding UNRWA would allow the agency to perform its humanitarian role, according to the statement.

Their conversation also touched on the overall situation in the Middle East and the danger of expanding the cycle of the ongoing conflict.

As of Monday, Canada, Australia, Britain, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Finland, Estonia, Japan, Austria and Romania have joined the United States in pausing funding for UNRWA

They discussed the Egyptian, regional, and international efforts aimed at reaching a ceasefire and deal on the Hamas-Israel hostages-prisoners swap and delivering relief aid to Gaza in large quantities soonest possible.

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Guterres also spoke with King Abdullah II of Jordan via phone on Monday. 

The Jordanian king underlined the need for the international community to maintain support for the UNRWA to enable its continuous provision of vital relief services in accordance with the UN mandate.

He urged countries to continue supporting the agency "so that it would be able to provide relief aid to over 2 million Palestinians in Gaza who are facing a catastrophic humanitarian situation".

He emphasized the need to reach an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and to ensure that Israel abides by international law and international humanitarian law, stressing the necessity to allow the displaced Gazans to return home.

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The king also noted the role of UN agencies in delivering humanitarian, relief, and medical aid to Gaza, while warning of extremist settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank, as well as violations of Muslim and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem, according to a statement by Jordan's Royal Hashemite Court.

Palestinians arrive in the southern Gaza town of Rafah after fleeing an Israeli ground and air offensive in the nearby city of Khan Younis on Jan 29, 2024. (PHOTO / AP)

The UNRWA, established as a subsidiary organ of the UN General Assembly in 1949, serves to support the relief and human development of Palestinian refugees and is entrusted with the mission of providing humanitarian assistance and protection to registered Palestinian refugees in the agency's operational areas until a just and lasting solution to their plight is achieved.  

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As of Monday, Canada, Australia, Britain, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Finland, Estonia, Japan, Austria and Romania have joined the United States in pausing funding for UNRWA after Israel accused several UNRWA employees of suspected involvement in the Hamas attack on Israel last October.

Israel has been waging a massive military campaign against Hamas in Gaza since Oct 7, 2023, after the militant group launched a surprise attack on southern Israel, which killed around 1,200 Israelis, according to the Israeli authorities.

The Palestinian death toll from Israeli attacks on Gaza has risen to 26,637 since the onset of the conflict, the Hamas-run Health Ministry said Monday.