Israel has charged multiple UNRWA employees with being complicit in Hamas’ terrorist attack on Israel on October 7, according to a statement released by UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini on Friday, January 26. The agency has terminated these employees’ contracts, and an investigation has begun.
“The Israeli authorities have provided UNRWA with information about the alleged involvement of several UNRWA employees in the horrific attacks on Israel on October 7,” Philippe Lazzarini stated in the statement. I have chosen to swiftly terminate these employees’ contracts and immediately begin an investigation to find the truth in order to safeguard the agency’s capacity to provide humanitarian aid. Any UNRWA worker implicated in terrorist activities will face consequences, including possible criminal charges.
“UNRWA calls for the immediate and unconditional release of all Israeli hostages and their safe return to their families, and it reiterates its condemnation of the heinous attacks of October 7th,” he continued.
“These shocking allegations come at a time when over 2 million people in Gaza depend on life-saving assistance that the Agency has been providing since the war began,” the UNRWA Commissioner-General continued in his statement. Betraying the core principles of the UN is tantamount to betraying the people we serve in Gaza, throughout the region, and beyond the globe.
UNRWA: What is it?
The United Nations General Assembly established the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in 1949. Its main goal is to provide protection and humanitarian help to officially recognised Palestine refugees within its assigned operational region. In addition to East Jerusalem, the Gaza Strip, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria, UNRWA also works in the West Bank.
Through the provision of top-notch services in the areas of education, healthcare, relief and social services, protection, camp infrastructure and enhancement, microfinance, and emergency assistance, UNRWA helps Palestine refugees realise their full potential in terms of human development. The organisation receives a large portion of its financing from voluntary donations.
Israel has informed the agency that some of its personnel were complicit in the planning of the Hamas terrorist attack on October 7, 2023. UNRWA fired the staff members and opened an investigation in response to the accusations. This terrorist incident was the catalyst for the Israel-Hamas conflict. In the wake of the terrorist incident, Israel is engaged in a war with Hamas.
October 7th: Hamas’s terrorist assault against Israel
Terrorists from Hamas launched a full-scale air, sea, and land attack on Israel on October 7. At least five thousand rockets were fired into Israel from Gaza, and tunnels were used to get past Israeli defences and slaughter countless Israelis, especially in the border villages. Over 200 people attended a music festival that was transformed into a killing field where numerous women were raped, disfigured, and kidnapped in Gaza. The attacks claimed the lives of at least 1,300 individuals, including several foreign nationals, women, children, and elderly people. Over 200 people were kidnapped and transported to Gaza.
