The United Nations Relief and Works Agency(UNRWA) for Palestine Refugees in the Near East on Monday issued a statement on its website and social media platforms accusing a group of people posing as officials from Gaza’s health ministry of stealing fuel and medical supplies from the agency’s compound in Gaza City. The UNRWA hinted that the items were stolen and strongly condemned any use of the materials for purposes other than humanitarian. The UNRWA staff at the Gaza headquarters had to evacuate the premises on October 13, and since then, they have had no access to the compound and “no additional details about the removal of the assets” . The security cameras at the exit and entrance had been destroyed.
However, later that day, UNRWA deleted all references to this accusation from its website and social media platforms without explanation. The UNRWA has not provided any clarification for this action.
A social media account run by Israel’s Foreign Ministry called out the deletion as an example of UNRWA’s overly-close relationship with Hamas, which is responsible for the 7 Oct. massacre of more than 1,400 people in Israel. The @Israel account posted on Twitter: “Wait UNRWA – Did Hamas also break into your Twitter account? Or are you just scared of disappointing your terrorist friends?”.
During past conflicts in Gaza, Hamas has been accused of exploiting UNRWA facilities, including schools, to launch rockets, store munitions, and to otherwise shield the terrorist group. These accusations have been made by Israel and human rights groups. In August 2021, UNRWA condemned the targeting of its facilities in the Gaza Strip during the conflict between Hamas and Israel. In November of the same year, UNRWA issued a statement saying it found a “man-made cavity” under one of its schools in Gaza, which it had “protested strongly to the relevant authorities in Gaza” without specifying who those authorities might be or what they might have intended to do with their terror tunnel.
In 2021, UNRWA’s Gaza director, Matthias Schmale, was replaced after he conceded that Israel’s airstrikes were “very precise” and they did not hit civilian targets, albeit with “some exceptions.” In a meeting with Hamas’ Yahya Sinwar, Schmale’s replacement called those comments “indefensible” and “affirmed her solidarity with the Palestinians”.
Israel has named Sinwar as one of the chief architects of the 7 Oct. slaughter.
UNRWA, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, has been accused of enabling Hamas materially by providing humanitarian services that the terrorist group itself would otherwise have to provide, as well as ideologically by supporting school curricula that demonizes Israel and is rife with antisemitic content. These criticisms contributed to the Trump administration suspending aid to the Agency in 2018. President Joe Biden restored aid to UNRWA after taking office in 2021.
It is important to note that UNRWA is mandated to provide humanitarian assistance and protection to registered Palestine refugees in the Agency’s area of operations pending a just and lasting solution to their plight. The agency operates in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, The Gaza Strip, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria. Tens of thousands of Palestine refugees who lost their homes and livelihoods due to the 1948 conflict continue to be displaced and in need of support, nearly 75 years on. UNRWA helps Palestine Refugees achieve their full potential in human development through quality services it provides in education, health care, relief and social services, protection, camp infrastructure and improvement, microfinance, and emergency assistance.
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