UN staff fired over possible links to 7 October attack

An Israeli officer at the site of the Supernova music festival after the killing of hundreds of Israeli civilians by Hamas-led gunmen (17 October 2023)

Nine staff members at the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, may have been involved in the 7 October Hamas-led attack on Israel, the United Nations says.

All nine would have their employment terminated, said UN deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq.

He said the UN had completed an investigation following allegations by Israel that UNRWA staff were involved.

About 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken back to Gaza as hostages in the unprecedented assault last autumn. Since the attack, the Israeli military operation in Gaza has killed more than 38,400 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.

Mr Haq did not specify what the men's precise involvement may have been.

"For us, any participation in the attacks is a tremendous betrayal of the sort of work that we are supposed to be doing on behalf of the Palestinian people," he said.

An Israeli Defense Forces spokeperson said the report showed UNRWA had hit a "new low".

The UN investigated 19 members of UNRWA staff in all, after Israel alleged that 12 took part in the attack.

Israel later claimed that more than 450 UNRWA staff were members of terrorist groups, but a UN review published in April found Israel had not provided evidence for its claims.

Aside from the nine employees who the UN said may have had links to the 7 October attack, its report found no evidence of involvement in one case, and insufficient evidence in the case of nine others.

UNRWA, which employs 13,000 people in Gaza, said in March that some of its employees reported being pressured by Israeli authorities into making false statements while in detention.

Most countries withdrew funding for the UN agency because of the Israeli allegations.

In July, the UK joined other countries that had resumed funding since then, leaving the US, UNRWA's single biggest donor, as the only country not to have restarted donations.

UNRWA has provided aid for Palestinian refugees since 1949.