Why three Nordic research institutes refused to endorse the Colonna report on UNRWA’s neutrality

Three Nordic research institutes were part of the independent review of UNRWA which was presented by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna last April, but they refused to endorse the final report, Development Today has learned. Numerous statements in the text raised doubts about the agency’s neutrality but were not supported by the researchers’ findings. UN Secretary General António Guterres tried to mediate between the parties to prevent the process from imploding.