Involvement in Hamas massacre?
UN wants to hold UNRWA employees accountable
January 28, 2024, 2:14 p.m
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After the serious allegations against UNRWA employees, Antonio Guterres announces consequences. The UN Secretary General says the accused will be prosecuted. At the same time, he asks for leniency with regard to the payment settings of several countries.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres wants to take action against any employee of the UN Palestinian relief agency UNRWA who was involved in the mass murder of Israelis. “Any UN staff involved in acts of terrorism will be held accountable,” it said in a statement. This also involves the criminal prosecution of the accused. The UN is ready to work with an authority capable of law enforcement. At the same time, Guterres appealed to UN member states not to stop funding UNRWA.
He is responding to the growing protests by UN member states, triggered by allegations that UNRWA employees were involved in the attack by the radical Islamic Hamas on the Israeli border area on October 7th. At that time, around 1,200 Israelis were murdered, some of them painfully. Israel has provided UNRWA with documents intended to substantiate the allegations. In his first statement since the allegations became known, Guterres said that nine of the twelve accused had been fired, one was dead and the identities of the other two were still being clarified.
Following other states, Germany also stopped payments to UNRWA. The Foreign Office announced that Germany will temporarily not approve any new funds until the investigation is completed.
Guterres called for the agency’s many innocent workers not to be forgotten: “The tens of thousands of men and women who work for UNRWA, many of them in some of the most dangerous situations for humanitarian workers, should not be punished.” Many people in the Gaza Strip are dependent on UNRWA aid. UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini warned: “It would be extremely irresponsible to sanction an agency and an entire community it serves based on allegations of criminal conduct against individuals.” The lives of the people in the Gaza Strip depend on the aid.