Israel has not presented any credible evidence to support claims that UNRWA staff were members of a “terrorist” group, an independent UN investigation led by a former French foreign minister has found.
Claims against the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) have led to a huge funding shortfall as several donor countries announced cuts.
An independent inquiry into the relief agency's practices was also commissioned by the United Nations Internal Monitoring Office, as well as a separate inquiry into the October attacks themselves.
The investigation, led by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna and supported by three Scandinavian research institutes, examined Israeli claims about UNRWA personnel affiliated with either Hamas's military wing or the Palestinian Islamic Jihad. It became clear that it was not supported.
In January, Israel accused UNRWA officials of abetting the October 7 attack on Israel, which left 1,139 people dead and an unspecified number of more than 200 people believed to have been captured.
In the original six-page document obtained by Al Jazeera, Israeli intelligence makes a number of accusations against UNRWA without evidence, including that the agency's facilities were used by Hamas in the October attack. It was included. In addition, 12 staff members directly participated in the attack, and another 190 provided intelligence and logistics support, the document said.
In March, the Israeli military claimed it had evidence of the involvement of four more UNRWA personnel.
However, the Colonna report notes that Israel has not raised any concerns about the vetting process for UNRWA personnel since 2011, and first complained about the process in January 2024.
A more detailed report prepared by a Nordic research group supporting Colonna says: “Israeli authorities have so far not provided any supporting evidence, and in March and April also responded to letters from UNRWA. They have not responded and are requesting names and supporting evidence that will allow UNRWA to: Begin an investigation. ”
These organizations are the Raoul Wallenberg Institute for Human Rights and Humanitarian Law in Sweden, the Chr Michelsen Institute in Norway, and the Danish Institute for Human Rights.
international setback
Based solely on Israel's accusations, 18 donor countries, including the United States, UNRWA's main donor, suspended funding to the agency.
Nevertheless, while some countries, such as the UK, have chosen to wait for the outcome of the corona report, the majority of donors have already reversed their original positions and resumed funding, with some countries such as the European Union Some countries were increasing their spending.
Only Austria, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, the UK and the US continue to suspend funding. The United States will keep the moratorium in place until March 2025, despite its intelligence community expressing “low confidence” in Israel's claims in February.
Contacted by Al Jazeera, a US State Department spokesperson acknowledged that “the accusations are significant.” [UNRWA] “A thorough investigation is being conducted,” but the funding ban was implemented before any such investigation.
A spokesperson for the British Foreign Office told Al Jazeera that it was “appalled” by Israel's claims and was exploring alternative routes to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza.
Germany, one of Israel's staunchest allies, confirmed that it has resumed funding for UNRWA operations in all areas except Gaza.
Impact on Gaza
“We have enough funds to get us through until June. It is not clear how we will fund our operations after that,” UNRWA spokeswoman Juliet Touma said. “No other institution can do what we do.”
“We previously operated across Gaza, providing aid and education. However, in late March, Israel announced it would block UNRWA food convoys to the north,” experts said. he added, referring to areas where he had declared an imminent threat.
Millions of people in the Gaza Strip are currently at risk of starvation, according to the Integrated Food Security Classification (IPC) system, which aid agencies use to determine threat levels.
According to the IPC report, around 210,000 people living in northern Gaza and Gaza City may already be facing hunger.
Southern and central Gaza, including Deir el-Balah, Khan Younis and Rafah governorates, has been classified as an “emergency” state and is expected to fall into famine by July without intervention or a ceasefire.
“I didn't know that territory could enter the IPC system so quickly,” Touma continued. “In Yemen it took years. In Gaza it took three months. Gaza was under blockade.”
“Make no mistake about it: Hunger is being used as a weapon of war,” she said.
“Living conditions on the Strip are terrible. We have thousands of people living on top of each other. Many people live in tents in their yards. There are long lines just to use the bathroom. As you can imagine, the hygiene is terrible,'' she added.
Making matters worse, commercial imports have been suspended as a result of the fighting, making toothpaste, soap and basic hygiene products difficult to obtain.
“When it comes to diseases, we were lucky to have a high vaccination rate among our population. But you can't vaccinate against hunger,” Touma said.
opposition of israel
Israel's opposition to UNRWA's activities against the Palestinian population has long been a source of controversy.
Last week, UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini told the UN Security Council that Israel was seeking to halt the agency's operations in Gaza.
“Requests by the authorities to provide aid to North Korea have been repeatedly rejected. Our staff are prohibited from participating in coordination meetings between Israel and humanitarian workers,” Lazzarini said. Told.
Continuing his comments, he told the 15-member group that the organization was the victim of an “insidious campaign to end its operations” that had “serious implications for international peace and security.” he said.
Israel has indicated that other agencies, such as the United Nations World Food Program, could fill the gap if UNRWA operations in Gaza are suspended.
However, given the scale of the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, no other agency appears to have the workflows and systems in place and the capacity to replace the 30,000-strong UNRWA team, many of whom are already deployed in Gaza. is.
Alternatives to the types of access methods used by UNRWA during the war have had limited effectiveness in mitigating the crisis.
Despite claims in recent days that both the United States and Israel have agreed to accept additional aid, the United Nations says the influx remains painfully lower than what is needed to sustain Gaza's trapped population. It is reported that there are few.
Supporters therefore say UNRWA urgently needs to be allowed to operate without restrictions in Gaza, with the full support of the international community.
This was a similar position in the Colonna Review, which said the agency's work was “essential” and that UNRWA was “indispensable in providing lifesaving humanitarian aid and essential social services, particularly health and education, to Palestinian refugees in Gaza.” “It remains extremely important.” , Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and the West Bank.”
