9 UNRWA staff members may have been involved in Oct. 7 attack on Israel, UN says
Nine staff members who worked for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees may have been involved in the Oct. 7 attack on Israel, according to a now-completed investigation conducted by The Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS).
The Oct. 7 attack launched by Hamas on Israel left 1,200 dead and around 240 people taken hostage, according to Israeli tallies. Since then, Israel declared war on Hamas and has killed over 40,000 people in Gaza, according to officials there.
In January, Israel alleged that at least 12 UNRWA staffers were involved in the Oct. 7 attack, leading many nations to pause funding to the aid organization, including the U.S.
These allegations against UNRWA workers were brought to the agency’s attention earlier this year, and their contracts were terminated, UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said in a news release published Monday.
A total of 19 UNRWA staff members in Gaza were investigated by the OIOS for allegedly being involved in the attack, Lazzarini said. The investigation was done at the request of U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres.
In one case, no evidence was found to support that the staff member in question was involved in the attack on Israel, according to Lazzarini. That staffer returned to the agency.
In nine cases, the evidence obtained was “insufficient to support the staff members’ involvement,” according to the news release.
“For the remaining nine cases, the evidence — if authenticated and corroborated — could indicate that the UNRWA staff members may have been involved in the attacks of 7 October,” Lazzarini said, adding that their contracts with UNRWA will be terminated.
Lazzarini said UNRWA’s priority is to “continue lifesaving and critical services for Palestine Refugees in Gaza and across the region, especially in the face of the ongoing war, the instability and risk of regional escalation.”
“UNRWA is committed to continue upholding the fundamental principles and values of the United Nations, including the humanitarian principle of neutrality, and to ensure that all its staff abide by the Agency’s policy on outside and political activities,” Lazzarini said.
UNRWA is a U.N. aid organization established in 1949 to provide aid and protection to Palestinian refugees in the West Bank, Gaza, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. The agency has moved much-needed humanitarian aid into Gaza, which has been under intense Israeli bombardment for months.
There are about 30,000 UNRWA workers across the region, including 13,000 in Gaza, according to the agency.
