Nahost - Israel presents list of suspected UN-employees at Hamas
Israel, according to its own statements, has compiled a list of names of UNRWA employees, who are reportedly active in the terrorist organization Hamas. The country claims to have identified 108 UNRWA staff members, to whom this applies, and presented a corresponding list to UNRWA Chief Philippe Lazzarini, the Israeli embassy in Berlin announced.
This would only concern a small part of the overall hundreds of UNRWA employees, who are alleged to have been employed by Hamas or the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ). The information cannot currently be verified independently.
According to a spokesperson for the Israeli Foreign Ministry, the list was also presented to UN Secretary-General António Guterres. Israel has not made it public yet.
The UN-Palestinian Aid Agency responded to a request for comment initially without comment. Previously, the "Bild" newspaper had already reported on this.
UNRWA came into the headlines in January when Israel accused several employees of the aid organization of being involved in the October 7 massacre. The organization is described by Israel as having been infiltrated by Hamas in its entirety. Several countries, including Germany, initially suspended their funding to the organization.
An independent review report by experts later concluded that UNRWA had "robust" mechanisms in place to uphold its neutrality principle. However, improvements were needed. At the beginning of April, Germany announced that it would resume funding for the UN-Palestinian Aid Agency UNRWA.
"UNRWA has become a terror funding organization. The German government must ensure that German taxpayer money does not end up in the hands of terrorists," demanded Israel's ambassador to Germany, Ron Prosor, in a statement. The Hamas also uses UNRWA institutions militarily, it was further stated.
- Israel alleges that 108 UNRWA employees, including those from the Islamic Resistance Movement, are involved with Hamas, and they provided this list to UNRWA Chief Philippe Lazzarini.
- Israel claimed that these UNRWA staff members are active in the ongoing conflicts in Gaza, which is a host to both Palestinians and Israelis.
- The Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesperson stated that the list containing these names was also presented to UN Secretary-General António Guterres in Berlin.
- The Palestinian Resistance Work, often associated with Hamas, is a significant concern for Israel, leading to accusations against UNRWA employees.
- The UN-Palestinian Aid Agency UNRWA initially remained silent on the issue when approached for a comment, but the topic had already been reported by the "Bild" newspaper.
- Despite the accusations, an independent review report found that UNRWA had robust mechanisms to uphold its neutrality principle, although improvements were needed.
- Following this report, Germany, like many other countries, resumed its funding for UNRWA, believing in its role in providing humanitarian aid to the Palestinian territories.
