Israel has provided no evidence of Palestinian refugee agency’s ties to Hamas, report says

An independent study commissioned by UN Secretary-General António Guterres has concluded that Israel has not yet provided evidence showing that staff from UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, are linked to Islamist organizations such as Hamas. The Israeli accusations, formulated last January, attributed a dozen local workers – 99% of the agency are – collusion or relationship with the brutal attack on October 7 that triggered the war in Gaza, for which the agency launched an internal investigation, subsequent to the commissioning of the independent evaluation – which has analyzed the application of the principles of neutrality by the agency – into the 12 alleged Hamas collaborators, of whom two have died. Contributions to UNRWA were cut off following those accusations. The agency is the main channel of humanitarian aid not only for Palestinians in Gaza, but for Palestinian refugee communities throughout the region.

According to the independent investigation, led by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna and presented this Monday in New York, “Israel has not yet provided evidence to substantiate” the accusations. On the contrary, the agency has robust frameworks to ensure compliance with the principles of humanitarian neutrality, although some problems remain that could lead some donors to review the freeze of their funding.

Criticism of collusion or involvement in the October 7 attack, which Israel expanded in March by claiming that more than 450 UNRWA personnel were military operatives in terrorist groups in Gaza, led many major donor states, with The United States leads the way, suspending its funding at a time when the Palestinians in Gaza urgently need help. They also caused the precautionary dismissal of several agency workers. Most major donors have resumed funding in recent weeks, including Canada. The United Kingdom was awaiting the conclusions of the report before making a decision. The case of the United States is different: on March 22, Congress permanently prohibited financial support to UNRWA.

The suspension of financing by 16 Member States amounted to some 450 million dollars (about 420 million euros), more necessary than ever when the humanitarian situation in the Strip is deteriorating by the minute. UNRWA “plays an indispensable role in the region, as a lifeline of humanitarian aid and provision of basic services to the population (…) Within the UN structure, its role is capital,” Colonna stressed in the presentation of the report. Therefore, “the international community has the responsibility to support UNRWA.”

Member States requested more information about what happened, as well as a strengthening of existing neutrality mechanisms and procedures at UNRWA, including investigation and supervision of staff. In collaboration with three renowned human rights institutes – the Raoul Wallenberg Institute, the Chr. Michelsen Institute and the Danish Institute for Human Rights – the report led by Colonna concludes with a list of recommendations to improve the neutrality and transparency mechanisms of the agency, “a roadmap” to strengthen guarantees, in the definition of the spokesman for the secretary general, Stéphane Dujarric.

The former head of French diplomacy has also pointed out that the implementation of all the recommendations, which are “concrete and feasible”, may require additional financing, hence the paramount importance of the role of donors. “Countries, like people, sometimes change their minds and we wait for the return of those donors” who canceled their financial support to the agency, said Guterres’ spokesperson.

Information supplied

The report concludes that UNRWA has regularly provided Israel with lists of its employees, with their corresponding identification cards, for scrutiny, and notes: “The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that as of March 2024 they had received lists of personnel without Palestinian identification numbers (ID, identification cards). Based on the March 2024 list, which contained Palestinian identification numbers, Israel made public claims that a significant number of employees are members of terrorist organizations. However, Israel has not yet provided evidence to prove this” despite repeated requests for “names and evidence that would allow UNRWA to open an investigation.”

The report finds that UNRWA has established a significant number of mechanisms and procedures to ensure compliance with humanitarian principles, with emphasis on the principle of neutrality, and that it has a more developed approach to independence than other similar UN entities or NGOs operating in the area. UNRWA’s Neutrality Framework was established in 2017 and covers substantive areas including the impartiality of its staff, including their use of social media; that of the facilities; that of assets (particularly vehicles) and other areas related to operations.

However, the text highlights, problems related to neutrality persist, such as “cases of staff publicly expressing political opinions, host country textbooks with problematic content being used in some UNRWA schools, and politicized staff unions that “They threaten UNRWA leadership and cause operational disruptions.” Over the years, political factions have used agency staff unions to pressure its management and influence decisions about service delivery or project execution. “The politicization of staff unions is considered one of the most sensitive neutrality issues and must be addressed with the full support of the advisory commission,” the document states. Another object of concern is the employees’ curricula and the false use of agency facilities.

The text makes a broad list of recommendations to improve transparency and neutrality mechanisms that avoid or at least limit these cases, although it notes the challenges derived from the operational, political and security environment in which it works. “Given the uniqueness of this political context, these measures will only have a significant impact with the support of the host countries, Israel and the Palestinian Authority,” he emphasizes.

Between 2017 and 2022, the annual number of alleged neutrality breaches ranged from 7 to 55, with an average of 21 alleged breaches per year. Since October 2023, the number has increased considerably, but the allegations prompted Guterres to establish this Independent Neutrality Review in light of the very serious reputational, financial, political and security implications of such allegations. Between January 2022 and February 2024, the investigations division received 151 complaints regarding violations of impartiality. Most are related to publications on social networks, made public by external sources.

As of April 2024, 50 neutrality cases were under investigation. The investigation led by Colonna highlights existing capacity issues in managing the number of complaints through existing structures and staff. “Resources are scarce,” she concludes. Implementing all the recommendations proposed by the independent report, when more than a million people lack shelter and practically no food, will be an arduous task, Colonna agrees.

In the absence of a political solution between Israel and the Palestinians, UNRWA remains instrumental in providing humanitarian aid and essential social services, especially in health and education, to Palestinian refugees in Gaza, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and the West Bank. As such, “UNRWA is irreplaceable and indispensable for the human and economic development of the Palestinians. In addition, many see the agency as a humanitarian lifeline,” the document states.

The independent team conducted field and facility visits in Amman, Jerusalem and the West Bank, and met with various stakeholders, including officials from donor Member States, host countries, Israel, the Palestinian National Authority, Egypt, United Nations agencies and non-governmental organizations The evaluators held meetings and interviews with more than 200 people, including UNRWA staff in Gaza. Direct contacts were established with 47 countries and organizations.

The UN Secretary General has accepted the extensive list of contents in the report and has agreed with the head of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini, to establish an action plan to promote it. Guterres has also called on all stakeholders, from donor countries to staff, to actively support UNRWA as it is “a lifeline for Palestine refugees in the region.”

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