The United Nations has announced that nine staff members at the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, may have been involved in the 7 October Hamas-led attack on Israel.
UN deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq stated that all nine staff members would have their employment terminated. The UN completed an investigation following allegations by Israel that UNRWA staff were involved in the attack.
In the unprecedented assault last autumn, about 1,200 people were killed, and 251 others were taken to Gaza as hostages.
Since the attack, the Israeli military operation in Gaza has resulted in the deaths of more than 38,400 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
Mr. Haq did not specify the exact nature of the men’s involvement.
“For us, any participation in the attacks is a tremendous betrayal of the sort of work that we are supposed to be doing on behalf of the Palestinian people,” he said.
An Israeli Defense Forces spokesperson stated that the report showed UNRWA had hit a “new low.”
The UN investigated 19 UNRWA staff members after Israel alleged that 12 took part in the attack.
Israel also claimed that over 450 UNRWA staff were members of terrorist groups, but a UN review published in April found that Israel had not provided evidence for these claims.
Of the 19 employees investigated, the UN found possible links to the 7 October attack in nine cases. In one case, no evidence of involvement was found, and in the remaining nine cases, there was insufficient evidence.
In March, UNRWA, which employs 13,000 people in Gaza, reported that some of its employees claimed they were pressured by Israeli authorities into making false statements while in detention.
Most countries withdrew funding for UNRWA due to the Israeli allegations.
In July, the UK joined other countries in resuming funding, leaving the US, UNRWA’s largest single donor, as the only country yet to restart donations.
UNRWA has been providing aid to Palestinian refugees since 1949.
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