I also downvoted the post for similar reasons regarding LLM reliability (particularly for politically sensitive issues) and lack of depth , and would like to address/provide more information to your last point.
Without debating whether UNRWA is ideal in every respect, they currently have uniquely high leverage in averting large-scale preventable deaths at low marginal cost. Gaza faces a severe humanitarian emergency, with rising rates of acute malnutrition and a resurgence of infectious diseases previously controlled or eliminated [1] EAs have historically supported interventions like malnutrition treatment and immunization because they are cost-effective and high-impact. What makes Gaza distinct from other crises (e.g., Sudan, Haiti, Mali) is that life-saving medical and nutrition supplies (including treatment for severe acute malnutrition) are already purchased, positioned just miles away, and ready for deployment. The main bottleneck is access, not funding or logistics.[2] If granted entry and supported to do their work according to humanitarian principles, organizations like UNRWA and MSF could begin distribution immediately. These supplies cannot easily be redeployed to other regions; if unused, they will likely expire or be destroyed, wasting resources that could save thousands of lives.
From an EA perspective, I see this this is a case where cost-effectiveness, tractability, and neglectedness align: lives can be saved at minimal cost, action is straightforward once access is secured, and the bottleneck is so sharp that intervention could mean the difference between survival and mass mortality. For EAs living in countries that are major global humanitarian donors and/or provide military or political support to Israel, there may be additional leverage. Our citizenship and/or location gives us avenues to influence government policy on aid access in ways that can unlock impact far beyond individual donations.
Concerns about politicization in the UN-run education system may be relevant to long-term peacebuilding, but in the short term, only UNRWA has the footprint, infrastructure, and distribution network to deliver aid at the necessary scale. In my opinion, from a cause prioritization perspective, this is precisely the kind of opportunity EAs should take seriously.
United Nations News, August 12, 2025 -- “Since the start of 2025, 148 people have died from malnutrition, including 49 children – 39 of them under five years old. Nearly 12,000 children under five were diagnosed with acute malnutrition in July, the highest monthly figure to date, with more than 2,500 suffering from the most severe form.” https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/08/1165631
Reuters, August 13, 2025 -- “Boxes of Gaza-bound aid turned back by Israel on Sunday languished atop a truck and flatbed trailer parked metres from its border with Egypt, as exasperated drivers and U.N. officials criticised delays in sending food and medicine to the enclave...The supplies seen by Reuters on Monday on the stalled truck and trailer outside Egypt’s Rafah border crossing carried blue logos of the World Health Organisation and labels describing contents like topical medications and suction devices to clean wounds...Reuters could not independently verify why the trucks were not allowed to enter Gaza and the Israeli military authority in charge of coordinating aid did not respond to a question about why they were not let into the enclave.” https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/turned-back-gaza-aid-shipments-languish-warehouses-roadsides-2025-08-13/
I also downvoted the post for similar reasons regarding LLM reliability (particularly for politically sensitive issues) and lack of depth , and would like to address/provide more information to your last point.
Without debating whether UNRWA is ideal in every respect, they currently have uniquely high leverage in averting large-scale preventable deaths at low marginal cost. Gaza faces a severe humanitarian emergency, with rising rates of acute malnutrition and a resurgence of infectious diseases previously controlled or eliminated [1] EAs have historically supported interventions like malnutrition treatment and immunization because they are cost-effective and high-impact. What makes Gaza distinct from other crises (e.g., Sudan, Haiti, Mali) is that life-saving medical and nutrition supplies (including treatment for severe acute malnutrition) are already purchased, positioned just miles away, and ready for deployment. The main bottleneck is access, not funding or logistics.[2] If granted entry and supported to do their work according to humanitarian principles, organizations like UNRWA and MSF could begin distribution immediately. These supplies cannot easily be redeployed to other regions; if unused, they will likely expire or be destroyed, wasting resources that could save thousands of lives.
From an EA perspective, I see this this is a case where cost-effectiveness, tractability, and neglectedness align: lives can be saved at minimal cost, action is straightforward once access is secured, and the bottleneck is so sharp that intervention could mean the difference between survival and mass mortality. For EAs living in countries that are major global humanitarian donors and/or provide military or political support to Israel, there may be additional leverage. Our citizenship and/or location gives us avenues to influence government policy on aid access in ways that can unlock impact far beyond individual donations.
Concerns about politicization in the UN-run education system may be relevant to long-term peacebuilding, but in the short term, only UNRWA has the footprint, infrastructure, and distribution network to deliver aid at the necessary scale. In my opinion, from a cause prioritization perspective, this is precisely the kind of opportunity EAs should take seriously.
United Nations News, August 12, 2025 -- “Since the start of 2025, 148 people have died from malnutrition, including 49 children – 39 of them under five years old. Nearly 12,000 children under five were diagnosed with acute malnutrition in July, the highest monthly figure to date, with more than 2,500 suffering from the most severe form.” https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/08/1165631
Reuters, August 13, 2025 -- “Boxes of Gaza-bound aid turned back by Israel on Sunday languished atop a truck and flatbed trailer parked metres from its border with Egypt, as exasperated drivers and U.N. officials criticised delays in sending food and medicine to the enclave...The supplies seen by Reuters on Monday on the stalled truck and trailer outside Egypt’s Rafah border crossing carried blue logos of the World Health Organisation and labels describing contents like topical medications and suction devices to clean wounds...Reuters could not independently verify why the trucks were not allowed to enter Gaza and the Israeli military authority in charge of coordinating aid did not respond to a question about why they were not let into the enclave.” https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/turned-back-gaza-aid-shipments-languish-warehouses-roadsides-2025-08-13/