Sweden to send additional humanitarian aid to Gaza

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Sweden will send additional humanitarian aid worth 150 million SEK (€13.3 million) to Gaza, the government announced on Thursday, in a move the Social Democratic opposition criticised for being ‘too late’.

Following Hamas’ attack on Israel on 7 October, Sweden has spent a total of 560 million SEK (€47 million) in humanitarian aid for Palestine. However, the government suspended payments of development aid to Palestinian organisations.

“This is about the most basic things that people need to get through the day – food, water, medicine and emergency shelter,” International Development Cooperation Minister Johan Forssell said during a press conference on Thursday.

The Swedish government said sufficient checks will be carried out to ensure none of the aid ends up in the hands of Hamas or other terrorist organisations.

“There are thorough controls at the border with Gaza, and also controls inside Gaza, to ensure that the money actually reaches its destination,” said Forssell, noting that Sweden also has chosen to work with large international organisations, mainly within the UN system.

“They are used to working in this kind of environment and have the capacity and resources to make sure that the aid actually reaches its destination,” says Forssell.

But according to the Social Democrats, who are currently in opposition, the government’s announcement is very late.

“Sweden is very late. It is probably the Sweden Democrats who have blocked this,” said the Social Democrats’ foreign affairs spokesperson, Morgan Johansson, referring to the far-right Sweden Democrats that support the centre-right coalition currently in power.

The Social Democrats were also critical of the government’s decision to suspend development aid, pointing out that it goes mainly to the West Bank and not to Hamas-controlled Gaza.

“If you withdraw it, you only risk playing into the hands of Hamas and extremist forces,” Johansson said.

Israeli bombings in Gaza have caused widespread death and destruction, but Forssell insisted that Israel has a “self-evident right” to defend itself against Hamas, although he noted that its “legitimate response” must be in accordance with international law, including international humanitarian law.

(Charles Szumski | Euractiv.com)