Gaza: In a surprising development, a report has claimed that some employees of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, who have been released into Gaza from Israeli detention, reported having been pressured by Israeli authorities into falsely stating that the agency had links to Palestinian militant group Hamas and took part in the October 7 attacks that killed 1,200 people.
A report by the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) reviewed by Reuters and dated February 2024 detailed allegations of mistreatment in Israeli detention made by unidentified Palestinians, including several working for UNRWA. In January, the US and other countries halted funding for the agency when it came to light that some of its staffers took part in the October 7 attack.
The UNRWA is the main agency providing aid for Gaza's population amid the humanitarian catastrophe triggered by Israel's military campaign. The United States was the agency's biggest donor. Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA Commissioner-General, said Israeli authorities provided evidence about the alleged involvement of the agency's staffers in the Hamas attacks and some of its staff members were fired.
What did the report allege?
According to the document, several UNRWA Palestinian staffers had been detained by the Israeli army, and added that the ill-treatment and abuse they said they had experienced included severe physical beatings, waterboarding, and threats of harm to family members.
"Agency staff members have been subject to threats and coercion by the Israeli authorities while in detention, and pressured to make false statements against the Agency, including that the Agency has affiliations with Hamas and that UNRWA staff members took part in the 7 October 2023 atrocities,” the report says.
The agency, however, declined a request by Reuters to see transcripts of its interviews. UNRWA communications director Juliette Touma said the agency planned to hand the information in the 11-page, unpublished report to agencies inside and outside the UN specialised in documenting potential human rights abuses. "When the war comes to an end there needs to be a series of inquiries to look into all violations of human rights," she said.
In addition to the alleged abuse endured by UNRWA staff members, Palestinian detainees more broadly described allegations of abuse, including beatings, humiliation, threats, dog attacks, sexual violence, and deaths of detainees denied medical treatment, the report said.
UNRWA operations in crisis
UNRWA has 13,000 staffers in Gaza, almost all of them Palestinians, ranging from teachers in schools that the agency runs to doctors, medical staff and aid workers. The US acknowledged that the agency has played a critical role in providing lifesaving assistance to Palestinians and saving lives. However, it entered a crisis when 12 of its employees were alleged to have been involved in the October 7 attacks.
"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. Any UNRWA employee who was involved in acts of terror will be held accountable, including through criminal prosecution," Lazzarini said at the time.
The Israeli accusations led 16 countries including the United States to pause $450 million in UNRWA funding. Norway, which has continued to finance the agency, said on March 6 that many countries that paused their funding are likely having second thoughts and payments could resume soon. Canada and Sweden have announced they will resume aid payments to UNRWA.
Allegations of ill-treatment by Israeli authorities accord with descriptions by Palestinians freed from detention in December, February and March reported by Reuters and other news media. Responding to allegations in the report, an Israeli military spokesperson said the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF)acts in accordance with Israeli and international law to protect the rights of the detainees.
Israel's latest accusations against UNRWA
The Israeli army levelled new accusations at UNRWA on March 4, saying it employed over 450 "military operatives" from Hamas and other armed groups, and that Israel has shared this intelligence with the United Nations. The head of the agency warned of "a deliberate and concerted campaign" aimed at ending the agency's work, citing comments by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and destruction of the agency's infrastructure in Gaza.
The report said UNRWA had documented the release of 1,002 detainees at Kerem Shalom aged from six to 82 years old as of February 19. Asked about the latest Israeli accusations, Touma said UNRWA encouraged any entity with information on the allegations against UNRWA staff to share it with the investigation, which is being conducted by a UN oversight body.
Israel says UNRWA should be shut down. Israeli officials and their allies — including in the US Congress — frequently allege that UNRWA allows anti-Israeli incitement to be taught in its hundreds of schools and that some of its staff collaborate with Hamas. The Trump administration suspended funding to the agency in 2018, but President Joe Biden restored it. The agency’s supporters say the allegations aim to diminish the long-festering refugee issue.
The Hamas-led Oct. 7 assault killed 1,200 people in Israel and resulted in another 253 being abducted, according to Israeli tallies. More than 30,000 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip during the Israeli offensive launched in response, according to health authorities in Hamas-controlled Gaza.
(with inputs from Reuters)
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