Israel’s main accusation is refuted by the United Nations-commissioned investigation report into the Palestinian relief agency UNRWA, which was presented on Monday in New York. Accordingly, Israel has not yet provided any evidence that the organization has been infiltrated by a significant number of terrorists from Hamas or Islamic Jihad. When it comes to neutrality, the aid agency needs to improve, but it has robust mechanisms in place to maintain its political independence.
In an initial reaction, the Israeli Foreign Ministry sharply rejected this: the “enormous extent of the infiltration” of the aid organization by Hamas was not taken into account. The report “ignores the seriousness of the problem,” it said. “This looks like an attempt to avoid the problem and not address it head on.”
Israel had already announced in January that twelve UNRWA employees were involved in the terrorist attacks on October 7th last year. UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini said in New York last week that they had been immediately released. Two of them have since died in the fighting in the Gaza Strip. In March, Israel claimed that more than 450 members of terrorist groups were employed by the charity. 16 countries, including the USA and Germany, then stopped payments.
We talked to all sides for nine weeks
The United Nations has therefore set up an independent commission chaired by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna to examine the Israeli allegations. In the past nine weeks, more than 200 people have been spoken to, including high-ranking aid agency employees, Israeli officials, representatives of donor and neighboring states and the Palestinian Authority. Everyone we spoke to was extremely cooperative, Colonna said on Monday. A total of 50 recommendations were made on how the organization’s work could be improved. Their work in the region is “irreplaceable and indispensable,” says the final report.
The Palestinian Relief Organization was founded in 1949. It is unique among UN agencies because it helps a single population group. It employs 32,000 people in the region, including 13,000 in the Gaza Strip. More than 98 percent are local employees. The aid organization runs schools and hospitals and provides the social infrastructure. At the moment, his most urgent task is to provide food to more than two million people in Gaza. There is a risk of famine in the region as a result of the war.
All interlocutors were extremely cooperative, says the chair of the UNRWA commission of inquiry, French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna.
(Photo: Hussein Malla/AP)
Israel has repeatedly argued that Hamas is using schools and hospitals in particular as cover. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plan for a post-war order calls for the abolition of UNRWA. This perpetuates the Palestinians’ status as refugees, he says. Israeli UN Ambassador Gilad Erdan, never at a loss for sharp tones, said last week at a Security Council meeting in New York: “UNRWA is Hamas, and Hamas is UNRWA.” Israel will not allow the aid organization to continue its work as in the past.
“A lifeline for Palestinian refugees in the region,” says the UN chief
The Colonna report said UNRWA annually sent lists of its staff to Israel, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority. The United States would also have received a list upon request. Israel has not raised any objections since 2011. One recommendation of the report is now to submit employee lists quarterly. The recipient’s security authorities should check these and raise concerns if necessary.
Further suggestions for improvement concern, for example, the teaching material used in schools. A small part of it is anti-Israel; here the organization must maintain neutrality under all circumstances. The same applies to messages on social media from employees in which they express political views. This must not happen, even if friends and family are directly affected by the war. According to Palestinian figures, more than 34,000 people have died as a result of the Israeli attacks in Gaza. According to UNRWA chief Lazzarini, these included 178 members of the Palestinian relief organization. According to Israeli figures, 1,200 people were killed in the Hamas attack on October 7th, some of them brutally.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres welcomed the report’s recommendations. He called for active support of the aid organization as it is “a lifeline for Palestinian refugees in the region.” In fact, most donor countries have resumed payments. However, the USA, as the most important donor, will not provide the aid organization with money again until March 2025 at the earliest. Congress decided this after the Israeli allegations in March. This is problematic for UNRWA because the USA was by far the largest donor, with annual payments of 300 to 400 million dollars. The European Union is transferring 150 million euros this year.