JERUSALEM – The U.N. agency for Palestinian affairs said Friday it was terminating the contracts of several employees after Israel alleged agency employees were involved in the Oct. 7 Hamas attack that killed 1,200 people in Israel came and which triggered the current fighting in Gaza.
“Any UNRWA staff involved in terrorist attacks will be held accountable, including through criminal prosecution,” Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner general of the UN agency for Palestine relief, said in a statement. He said he had ordered an investigation “to find out the truth immediately.”
UNRWA did not say how many staff were suspected; the United States puts the number at 12. The agency employs around 13,000 people in Gaza, providing food aid, health care and education there.
The State Department said it was pausing new funding for the agency while it reviews the allegations and the steps the United Nations is taking to address them.
The United States is UNRWA's largest donor; Secretary of State Antony Blinken has called the agency's mission “essential.” Any suspension of U.S. aid, even temporary, could weaken the agency's ability to respond to what aid workers have described as urgent humanitarian needs. More than 93 percent of the population is suffering from “crisis hunger” and 1.9 million people have sought refuge in UNRWA shelters.
“These shocking allegations come at a time when more than two million people in Gaza rely on the life-saving assistance the agency has been providing since the start of the war,” Lazzarini said. “Anyone who betrays the core values of the United Nations also betrays those we serve in Gaza, throughout the region and elsewhere in the world.”
According to the Hamas-run Ministry of Health in Gaza, Israel's campaign to destroy Hamas in the Gaza Strip has caused the deaths of more than 26,000 Palestinians. Most were civilians.
Aid workers said their staff were targeted while carrying out life-saving efforts. According to the agency, 152 UNRWA staff were killed and at least 357 displaced civilians were killed while seeking shelter in their facilities.
The agency made the allegations, the firing of its staff and the investigation public just hours after the International Court of Justice ordered Israel to do more to prevent the deaths of civilians in Gaza and facilitate more aid to the besieged enclave.
A State Department spokesman said the U.S. was “extremely disturbed” by the allegations and welcomed the investigation. “The United States has reached out to the Israeli government for further information on these allegations, and we have informed members of Congress,” spokesman Matt Miller said in a statement. “We will remain in close contact with the United Nations and the Government of Israel on this matter.”
An Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman said an “urgent review” of the allegations was expected. He did not provide any further details.
“It is crucial that UNRWA conducts a thorough internal investigation into the activities of Hamas operatives and other terrorist elements within its ranks to ensure that the organization's humanitarian activities are not misused for malicious purposes,” said spokesman Lior Haiat .
The Biden administration was Israel's main ally throughout the war. It has accelerated the transfer of American weapons while urging Israel to do more to limit civilian casualties. Critics of the Israeli military operation pointed to the timing of the allegations, which came on a day when the International Court of Justice ruling would otherwise have dominated news from Gaza.
The United States has provided more than $1 billion to UNRWA since 2021. A National Security Council spokesman said in November that the State Department was exercising “strict oversight” of the organization's policies, programs and finances.
According to him, risk reduction measures included close monitoring of the organization's activities through partner checks, anti-terrorism certifications and close cooperation with the Israeli authorities.
“UNRWA is an essential part of any plan aimed at maintaining stability in the region and protecting civilians,” he said.
Jeff Stein and John Hudson in Washington contributed to this report.