U.N. Efforts in the Middle East, Helping or Hurting?, A DebateU.N. Efforts in the Middle East, Helping or Hurting?, A Debate

Established by the United Nations in 1949, the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) aimed to temporarily assist Palestinian refugees displaced by Israel after the First Arab-Israeli War. Decades later, it continues to provide services to almost 6 million Palestinian refugees in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria. Beyond UNRWA, the United Nations has overseen peacekeeping missions in the Middle East since the 20th century. Have these U.N. efforts been successful? Those who believe that the United Nations' efforts help the Middle East argue that the organization's peacekeeping forces act as buffers between warring factions and prevent wider regional conflicts. Without their presence, they contend, refugee populations in the region would face far greater suffering and deprivation. Those who believe that the United Nations' efforts hurt the Middle East argue that the organization's forces have proven ineffective in stopping violence among the competing groups. These forces also fail to maintain strict neutrality, they contend, and don't do enough to either directly help Palestinians or improve the humanitarian situation. Do U.N. efforts in the Middle East help or hurt?