Addressing a meeting of the Arab League foreign ministers in Cairo, the head of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) denounced external attacks on that agency.

Lazzarini called on Arab countries to fund the Agency in order to increase and improve the services it provides in health and education, among others.

The 5.7 million Palestinian refugees represent 20 percent of the global total and are the oldest population with that status, according to the United Nations data.

UN Security Council resolutions, wars, dialogues and sanctions have so far failed to achieve a real progress in solving the problem, which is key to the stability in the Middle East.

UNRWA estimates that after the establishment of Israel in 1948, some 700,000 Palestinians were expelled from their homes, although other sources made the figure rose to 900,000.

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