UN officials are urging nations to reconsider withholding funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA). They pledged to punish any staff found involved in the alleged Hamas attack on Israel while warning that vital aid for approximately two million people in Gaza hangs in the balance.
Top donors, including the U.S. and Germany, have halted funding following Israeli accusations that a dozen UNRWA staff in Gaza were involved in the October 7 attack. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed his horror at the accusations and appealed for governments to ensure the continuity of UNRWA’s operations, promising to hold accountable any UN employee involved in terror-related activities.
Guterres suggested that punitive measures could include criminal prosecution, a rare move given the typical functional immunity enjoyed by most UN staff. Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA commissioner-general, joined in urging nations to reconsider their funding pause to prevent a suspension of humanitarian response. An investigation into the Israeli allegations is underway.
With more than 26,000 casualties in Israel’s military campaign against Hamas in Gaza, deaths from preventable diseases and famine risks are growing due to reduced aid inflows. Since the October 7 attacks, which killed 1,200 in Israel, Gaza’s 2.3 million people, including around one million sheltering in UNRWA facilities, have become more reliant on its aid.
Israel’s UN Ambassador Gilad Erdan called on donor states to suspend support and demand a thorough investigation into the involvement of all UNRWA employees in terror. Israel has not publicly disclosed details of the alleged involvement, but Guterres confirmed that 12 staff members were implicated, with nine terminated, one deceased, and the identities of the other two being clarified.
Observers warn that withholding funds exacerbates hunger and the risk of famine. Michael Fakhri, a UN-appointed expert on the right to food, stated that famine is now inevitable in Gaza due to the funding cuts.
UNRWA was already struggling before the conflict, with at least 150 of its 13,000 staff killed since the Israel-Hamas conflict began. Palestinians expressed anger at the funding cuts, while Norway and Ireland announced they would continue funding the agency.