'Prepared for the worst': UNRWA chief discusses war with Berri in Beirut

Commissioner-General of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, Philippe Lazzarini met Tuesday with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and caretaker Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib, in Beirut.

Lazzarini said he discussed with Berri the latest developments in the region including the war in Gaza, the "dramatic" situation in the West Bank, and the clashes in Lebanon.

"We must always be prepared for the worst," Lazzarini told Berri as he mentioned the tens of thousands of people who had been forced to flee their homes on both sides of the border.

Lazzarini and Berri also discussed the "Israeli attempts" to drive UNRWA out of existence and the "daily attacks" on UNRWA employees and facilities in Gaza.

Palestinians in Lebanon meanwhile protested in front of UNRWA's headquarters in Beirut, holding their national flags and banners saying they refuse that UNRWA employees be punished for their national affiliation.

UNRWA, one of the UN’s largest agencies, has 13,000 staff working in Gaza and more than 30,000 in the region providing health and educational facilities to Palestinian refugees.

The total number of UNRWA staff killed in the conflict since October 7 has reached at least 220.