The World Briefly

April 24, 2024

Burden of Proof

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Israel did not provide evidence that a “significant” number of workers in a United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees were linked to militant groups such as Hamas, according to a UN report released this week, the Washington Post reported.

At the same time, the UN’s independent review group examining the situation at the UN’s Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) said it must improve the vetting of staff to ensure neutrality, and work to reestablish trust with donors.

While the report did not outright reject Israel’s claims, it provided insight into the screening procedure and management practices of the agency. The head of the review group, France’s former Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna, said UNRWA was “indispensable and irreplaceable” in dealing with the humanitarian crisis faced by Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

Many donors, including the United States, suspended their funding to UNRWA in January after Israel alleged a dozen of its 13,000 employees took part in the Oct. 7 Hamas-led attacks that killed around 1,200 people in Israel, and that more than a thousand workers had connections with militant groups.

The suspended donations amount to $450 million, nearly half of UNRWA’s yearly budget. The agency has warned it could go bankrupt by the end of June.

The Israeli government has repeatedly called for the dismantling of UNRWA, an agency founded by the UN in 1949 to provide aid to Palestinians fleeing or being expelled from their homes because of the creation of the state of Israel. In addition to claims about links to Hamas, Israel says the agency contributes to growing antisemitism and the perpetuation of the Palestinian refugee issue.

Another report probing Israel’s claims on the dozen involved in the attack – those employees were fired after the accusations were made – is still underway. Still, it was the report released on Monday that donors, including Germany, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, are relying on to resume funding.

Israel responded, “The Colonna report ignores the severity of the problem, and offers cosmetic solutions that do not deal with the enormous scope of Hamas’ infiltration of UNRWA.”

Meanwhile, on Tuesday, UN human rights chief Volker Türk said he was “horrified” by the destruction of two hospitals in Gaza and the mass graves found there, Reuters reported.

Palestinian authorities said they found 310 bodies in mass graves at the Nasser hospital in Khan Younis and another 30 at the Al Shifa site after Israeli troops withdrew. UN Human Rights Commission spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani said the state of the bodies, some of whom “had their hands tied,” indicated human rights violations.

The Israeli military called the claims “baseless and unfounded,” adding that soldiers were examining bodies looking for those of Israeli hostages after receiving intelligence. “The examination was carried out respectfully while maintaining the dignity of the deceased,” the Israeli military said.

This story originally appeared in the April 24, 2024 newsletter, Finding a Foothold.