The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) is facing renewed scrutiny following allegations of connections to terrorist organizations and the promotion of hateful content within its schools. These accusations come amidst existing controversies surrounding the agency's operations.
U.N. Watch, a Geneva-based non-governmental organization, has published excerpts from a comprehensive report detailing alleged interactions between high-ranking UNRWA personnel and members of terrorist groups. Executive Director Hillel Neuer asserts that the documented meetings demonstrate complicity between UNRWA staff and these groups. Neuer's attempts to discuss these findings with UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini prior to publication were reportedly unsuccessful.
A UN vehicle at the UNRWA offices in Jerusalem. (Yoav Dudkevitch/TPS)
The released materials include images depicting Lazzarini and former Commissioner-General Pierre Krahenbuhl meeting with individuals linked to organizations such as the Jihadi Islamic Movement, the Islamic Ansar League, and Hamas. Another image purportedly shows UNRWA regional directors congratulating senior Hamas member Ali Baraka on the organization's anniversary. U.N. Watch also claims to possess a transcript from a 2017 meeting where Krahenbuhl expressed solidarity with a group that included representatives from Hamas, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ).
A Hamas terrorist participates in a military parade. (Reuters/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa/File Photo)
Former UNRWA Commissioner-General Pierre Krahenbuhl. (AP Photo/Raad Adayleh, File)
Furthermore, U.N. Watch's report includes interviews with former UNRWA students who allege that they were taught to "fight back and resist" to liberate Palestine. One student reportedly stated that the solution for Jerusalem is to "kill the Jews."
Another NGO, IMPACT-se, has released a report identifying numerous high-ranking UNRWA officials with alleged ties to Hamas and PIJ, some of whom were reportedly involved in the October 7, 2023 terror attack. IMPACT-se also alleges that UNRWA schools are violating UNESCO standards by promoting hatred and violence against Israel.
UNRWA operations in Gaza. (Ahmed Zakot/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini. (Jean-Guy Python/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)
UNRWA has responded to these allegations by accusing U.N. Watch of spreading disinformation and conducting misleading interviews with students. They maintain that such accusations aim to undermine the agency and deflect attention from its humanitarian mission. The U.S. and other countries have paused funding to UNRWA following the emergence of these concerns.
