U.N. agency fires 9 staffers after finding they may have been involved in Oct. 7 attack on Israel
The U.N. says it has fired nine staff members from its agency for Palestinian refugees, known as UNRWA, after an internal investigation found they may have been involved in the Hamas-led Oct. 7 attack against Israel.
The U.N, secretary-general's office announced the move in a brief statement to journalists Monday. It did not elaborate on the UNRWA staffers' likely role in the attack. It said the nine included seven staffers who were fired previously over the claims.
An Israeli intelligence document shared in January with CBS News and a number of other Western news outlets detailed the allegations against a dozen U.N. employees. The document claimed seven staff members stormed into Israeli territory during the Oct. 7 attack, with two staffers allegedly participating in kidnappings.
The U.N.'s internal watchdog has been investigating the agency since Israel in January accused 12 UNRWA staffers of being involved in the Oct. 7 attack on Israel in which militants killed 1,200 people and abducted some 250 others.
Israel's allegations initially led top donor countries, including the U.S., to suspend their funding for UNRWA, the main agency providing aid to Palestinians in Gaza amid the 10-month old war there. The U.S., the largest funder of the agency, said in January that it would temporarily pause funding while the allegations against staffers were reviewed. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller at the time said the U.S. was "extremely troubled" by the reports, while Secretary of State Antony Blinken told U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres that "there must be complete accountability for anyone who participated in the heinous attacks."
The pause in funding caused a cash crunch of about $450 million dollars. Since then, all donor countries except for the U.S. have decided to resume funding.
The U.N. watchdog, called the Office of Internal Oversight Services, said it drew on evidence provided by Israel in discussions with Israeli authorities. It said it could not independently corroborate that evidence since it did not have direct access to it. The investigators also reviewed internal UNRWA information, including staff records, email and other communications data.
It said it found sufficient evidence pointing to nine employees' potential involvement in the Oct. 7 attack.
"I have decided that in the case of these remaining nine staff members, they cannot work for UNRWA," the agency's head Philippe Lazzarini said in a statement.
"The agency's priority is to continue lifesaving and critical services for Palestine refugees in Gaza and across the region, especially in the face of the ongoing war, the instability and risk of regional escalation," said Lazzarini, who also said he condemned the Oct. 7 attack.
In nine other cases, the evidence was insufficient, and in one other case there was no evidence pointing to involvement.