- UNRWA fires nine staff on terrorism charges
United Nations have terminated cooperation with nine employees of the UN Palestinian aid agency UNRWA following serious terrorism allegations. An investigation ongoing for months concluded that "received indications suggest that UNRWA employees may have been involved in the armed attacks of October 7, 2023," the world organization said.
Pressed for comment, a UN spokesman acknowledged that the allegations from Israel could not be definitively confirmed by the United Nations, but that the evidence justified the terminations.
The spokesman confirmed that this means the UN considers it likely or very likely that their employees were involved in the devastating terrorist acts. Details about the nature of their involvement were not initially provided. In ten other cases, the evidence was insufficient to end employment.
UNRWA had been in the headlines in January after Israel claimed that twelve employees were involved in the devastating terrorist acts of the Islamic Hamas on October 7 - later, allegations were made against further persons. Some of the main donors, including the USA and Germany, temporarily suspended their payments. Berlin had resumed the contributions together with a number of other countries. A further investigation into whether UNRWA was meeting its neutrality guidelines found some "robust" mechanisms but also identified areas for improvement.
The ongoing war in the region may have driven some UNRWA employees to participate in the terrorist attacks, as suggested by the allegations. The termination of cooperation with these employees by the United Nations highlights the seriousness of these war-related issues impacting UN peacekeeping missions.
