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The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) is terminating “with immediate effect” the contracts of staff allegedly involved in the October 7 attacks on Israel, Commissioner General Philippe Lazzarini, pictured above, said on Friday.
CNN –
The U.N. aid agency operating in Gaza said Friday that Israel had accused some of its staff of involvement in the Oct. 7 attacks and that their contracts would be terminated “immediately.”
United Nations Disaster Relief Agency (UNWRA) Commissioner General Philippe Lazzarini said Israeli authorities had provided the agency with “information” that several of its employees were involved in Hamas' murderous rampage in southern Israel, in which the militants The group killed at least 1,200 people and kidnapped more than 250 others.
An investigation will be launched into the employees' alleged involvement and those involved will be held accountable “including through criminal prosecution,” Lazzarini added. The commissioner general said he made the decision to protect the agency's ability to provide humanitarian assistance.
Israel's Foreign Ministry told CNN on Friday that it welcomed the investigation. “It is important that UNRWA conducts a thorough internal review of Hamas's activities and other terrorist factors within its ranks to ensure that the organization's humanitarian activities are not exploited,” it said.
The news came hours after the United Nations' top court ordered Israel to act immediately to prevent genocide in Gaza but failed to call for a ceasefire, which was widely welcomed by the three main parties involved.
In the wake of the allegations against UNRWA, the US State Department announced that it had “temporarily stopped providing additional funding” to the organization – a move praised by Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to “emphasize the need for a thorough and expeditious investigation into this matter,” State Department spokesman Matt Miller said in a statement Friday.
The US has contacted the Israeli government for further details on the allegations, Miller added. They also briefed members of Congress.
CNN has contacted UNRWA and Israeli authorities regarding the information Israel provided to UNRWA and the nature of UNRWA staff's alleged involvement.
“These shocking allegations come at a time when more than two million people in Gaza rely on the life-saving assistance the agency has been providing since the start of the war,” Lazzarini said. “Anyone who betrays the core values of the United Nations also betrays those we serve in Gaza, throughout the region and elsewhere in the world.”
On Friday, Republican U.S. Senator Jim Risch, ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, called the allegations “unconscionable.”
“For years, I have warned the Biden administration against resuming funding for UNRWA, which has a history of employing people associated with terrorist movements like Hamas. Today’s news is another example that highlights how corrupt this organization truly is.”
CNN cannot independently verify the allegations.
Israel's relations with the United Nations have deteriorated in recent months after senior officials at the organization repeatedly condemned the country's military actions in the war in Gaza.
In December, Israeli diplomats lashed out when UN Secretary-General António Guterres used a rarely used but powerful tool in his determined push for a ceasefire. At the time, Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen said the U.N. chief's tenure was “a threat to world peace” and that his call for a ceasefire in Gaza amounted to support for Hamas and the Oct. 7 attack.
As Israel's offensive enters its fourth month, entire neighborhoods in Gaza have been wiped out, vital supplies are running low and more than 2.2 million people are facing starvation, dehydration and deadly diseases. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, at least 1.7 million Palestinians have been internally displaced, many of them multiple times.
Meanwhile, a growing number of world leaders are warning about the rising Palestinian death toll. According to the Hamas-run Health Ministry, Israeli attacks on Gaza have killed at least 26,083 people, the vast majority of whom are women, children and the elderly. CNN cannot independently verify the figures due to the difficulties of reporting from the war zone.
Israel has strongly opposed calls for a ceasefire, saying it must continue to pursue its goal of eliminating Hamas.
This is a developing story and will be updated.