UNRWA probes employees over suspected involvement in October 7 attack
Al Jazeera
The US has paused funding to the UN agency after Israel said some of its staff were allegedly involved in the attacks.
The United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees says it has opened an investigation into some employees Israel alleges were involved in the October 7 attacks, and that it has severed ties with those staff members.
“The Israeli authorities have provided UNRWA with information about the alleged involvement of several UNRWA employees in the horrific attacks on Israel on October 7,” Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner-general of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), said on Friday.
“To protect the agency’s ability to deliver humanitarian assistance, I have taken the decision to immediately terminate the contracts of these staff members and launch an investigation in order to establish the truth without delay.”
Lazzarini did not disclose the number of employees allegedly involved in the attacks, nor the nature of their alleged involvement. He said, however, that “any UNRWA employee who was involved in acts of terror” would be held accountable, including through criminal prosecution.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was “horrified by this news”, according to his spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric. He added that the UN chief had asked Lazzarini to conduct a probe to ensure any UNRWA employee guilty of abetting the October 7 attacks be terminated and referred for potential criminal prosecution.
