Nine staff members of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) have been fired for potentially being involved in the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel, the United Nations announced on Monday.
The U.N.’s Office of Internal Oversight Services conducted an investigation, examining the alleged involvement of 19 UNRWA staff members, two of whom have since died.
“For nine people, the evidence was sufficient to conclude that they may have been involved in the seventh of October attacks,” said Farhan Haq, deputy spokesperson for the U.N., during a briefing. These individuals, all men, have been dismissed following the investigation. The remaining cases are still under review.
The investigation began after Israel accused 12 UNRWA staff members of participating in the attacks, and later brought seven additional cases to the U.N.’s attention. The U.N. has not provided specific details about the activities of the dismissed staff members but emphasized that any involvement in the attacks is a severe betrayal of their responsibilities.
Despite these findings, the U.N. also noted that in several cases, the evidence was not sufficient to support allegations. The investigation faced challenges as much of the evidence provided by Israeli authorities could not be independently verified.
