Investigation Finds 9 Employees of UNRWA May Have Participated in Oct. 7 Attacks in Israel

A truck, marked with the U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) logo, crosses into Egypt from Gaza, at the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip, during a temporary truce between Hamas and Israel, in Rafah, Egypt, on Nov. 27, 2023. (Amr Abdallah Dalsh/Reuters)

An internal United Nations (U.N.) investigation has found that nine employees of one of its agencies may have been involved in the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks in Israel, and those employees will be fired, according to the agency’s head.

The Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS), a U.N. watchdog, launched an investigation earlier this year into allegations that 19 staff members of the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in Gaza participated in the Oct. 7 attacks in Israel.

The watchdog has now concluded its probe, according to an Aug. 5 statement by UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini, who said one of the accused was completely cleared of any involvement in the attacks, while there was insufficient evidence to support allegations against nine others.

“For the remaining nine cases, the evidence—if authenticated and corroborated—could indicate that the UNRWA staff members may have been involved in the attacks of 7 October,” Lazzarini said, adding that they will be fired.

“I have decided that in the case of these remaining nine staff members, they cannot work for UNRWA,” he said. “All contracts of these staff members will be terminated in the interest of the Agency.”

In January, when the allegations of UNRWA staff involvement in the Oct. 7 attacks first emerged, the U.S. State Department halted funding for UNRWA, with department spokesperson Matthew Miller saying that the United States was “extremely troubled” by allegations that 12 UNRWA staff members may have been involved in the Hamas-led terror attacks on Israel.

Lazzarini ordered an investigation, a move that was praised by Miller, who urged the U.N. to “quickly investigate last week’s troubling reports, hold those responsible accountable, and review UNRWA’s procedures.”

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant in February publicly revealed the identities of 12 UNRWA staff members who he said “actively participated” in the Hamas-led Oct. 7 attacks.

“In addition to these 12 workers, we have significant indications based on intelligence, that over 30 UNRWA workers participated in the massacre, facilitated the taking of hostages, looted and stole from Israeli communities, and more,” Gallant told reporters at a briefing in mid-February, according to The Times of Israel.

Gallant alleged that at least 12 percent of the 13,000 or so UNRWA employees in Gaza had links to Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, both designated by Israel and the United States as terror groups.

In subsequent months, several more UNRWA employees were accused of involvement in the attacks, bringing the total to 19.

“Additional allegations were brought to our attention in March and April and the concerned staff were added to the OIOS investigation,” Lazzarini said in his Aug. 5 statement, in which he announced the results of the probe and reiterated “UNRWA’s condemnation of the 7 October attack in the strongest possible terms.”

“I call—once again—for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages and their safe return to their families,” he said.

It’s unclear how many Israeli hostages are still held by Hamas.

On Oct. 7, thousands of Hamas terrorists poured into Israel, killing about 1,200 people and taking about 250 hostages. Israel retaliated with a military campaign in Gaza with the stated goal of wiping out Hamas.

In November 2023, Hamas released 105 civilian hostages in exchange for a temporary cease-fire and the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli custody.

In June 2024, the Israeli government said that 120 hostages remained in captivity, 43 of whom had been declared dead in absentia, based on various types of information such as forensic analysis, CCTV footage, bystander videos, and intelligence tip-offs.

UNRWA has long faced criticism from Israel and others, who accuse the group of coordinating with terrorist groups, as well as of using teaching materials in Palestinian schools that foster anti-Semitism and jihadism.

Israel has long maintained that Hamas has used UNRWA-operated schools and health facilities in Gaza to shield its terror operations.

Eylon Levy, former Israeli government spokesman and current adviser to the Israeli president, called on Lazzarini to resign following the conclusion of the OIOS investigation.

UNRWA was established in 1949 to provide humanitarian assistance to Palestinian refugees.

Its area of operations includes the Gaza Strip, where Israel continues its military campaign to neutralize Hamas, whose operatives use the area to stage attacks against Israel.

The U.S. State Department praised UNRWA in a statement earlier this year for the “critical role” it plays in providing lifesaving assistance to Palestinians but called for “complete accountability” for any staff members found to have participated in the Oct. 7 attacks.