The United Nations Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) is involved in a scandal, due to the alleged complicity of several members of the organization with the terrorist group, Hamas.
Logo of the United Nations Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA). Source: https://www.undp.org/jposc/unrwa-0
This United Nations agency is going through a scandalous moment with internal and external criticism. Recently, Israel accused a dozen workers of the United Nations Agency for Palestinian Refugees, or UNRWA, for their participation in the attack carried out by the terrorist group Hamas on October 7, when the war broke out. which left some 1,200 dead and 250 kidnapped on Israeli soil.
This caused UNRWA to dismiss the designated personnel and initiate an investigation. Following this dismissal and announcement, the United States, Canada, Italy and Australia suspended their funding to UNRWA. Beyond the controversy, this article will shed some light on this agency.
Following the Arab-Israeli conflict of 1948, UNRWA was created by resolution 302 (IV) of the United Nations General Assembly. This agency was created to provide emergency support and initiate development programs with the Palestinian refugee population. Originally conceived as a temporary organization , UNRWA has become one of the largest programs of the United Nations.
T he United Nations Agency for Palestinian Refugees carries out its work with a specific sector of the population. Under its operational definition, refugees are people whose place of residence was Palestine between June 1946 and May 1948, who lost their homes and means of livelihood as a result of the Arab-Israeli conflict of 1948. These people are registered with UNRWA and are They took refuge in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, the Gaza Strip and also provide assistance to their sons and daughters.
Specifically, UNRWA automatically registers the descendants of Palestinian refugees in perpetuity, which has caused an explosive growth in the number of people. From an original number of around 700,000 refugees, there are now 5.9 million Palestinians registered with UNRWA, although the vast majority did not flee the conflict.
UNRWA's mission is to help Palestine refugees achieve their full human development potential in the challenging, internationally agreed circumstances in which they live. UNRWA therefore provides a range of essential services within the framework of international standards to Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Unlike UNHCR, its mission is to provide basic services and not international protection.
The Agency's mandate is to provide education, health, relief and social services, microfinance and emergency assistance to refugees, as well as protection and camp and infrastructure improvement services. UNRWA services are provided in accordance with the United Nations humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality and operational independence.
UNRWA began helping refugees in 1950. The mandate of the United Nations Palestine Refugee Agency (UNRWA) is derived primarily from UN General Assembly resolutions. Its mandate has been extended through approval in various resolutions of the General Assembly.
UNRWA extended the provision of emergency services to people in its area of operations who are currently displaced and in serious need of continued assistance as a result of the hostilities of 1967 and later.
In 1997, Washington designated Hamas a Foreign Terrorist Organization, freezing its assets in the United States. Other countries and international entities that have also designated Hamas as a terrorist organization include Australia, Canada, the European Union, Japan, Israel, the Organization of American States, Paraguay, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. UNRWA follows the guidelines of the United Nations Security Council's consolidated list of terrorist groups and individuals, which does not include Hamas.
Since its creation, the General Assembly has systematically renewed the Agency's mandate on a routine basis, most recently for another three years until June 30, 2023 with the overwhelming support of UN Member States. It is important to clarify that UNRWA does not have the mandate to engage in political negotiations or durable solutions.
The United Nations Palestinian Refugee Agency has supported multiple generations of Palestine refugees with health, educational and social assistance. The life expectancy of Palestine refugees at birth is similar to that of nationals of host countries. More than 2.5 million Palestine refugees have graduated from UNRWA schools since the 1950s.
UNRWA has operations in five fields: Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, the Gaza Strip and the West Bank and including the city of Jerusalem. This agency employs about 30,000 people. The vast majority of the Agency's staff (approximately 29,000) are refugees. UNRWA is one of Gaza's largest employers , with 13,000 employees, mostly Palestinians.
The United Nations Agency for Palestinian Refugees receives all its funding from voluntary contributions, mostly from donor states. These donations represent 95% of the budget.
In 2021, Washington was the largest donor , with a total contribution of over $338 million across all UNRWA funding portals, followed by Germany (over $176 million). These contributions represented around 46% of the total contributions UNRWA received from government and EU donors.
Chart 1: UNRWA top donors in 2022. Source:https://www.unrwa.org/sites/default/files/top_20_donors_2022_overall_ranking.pdf
A 2016 World Bank report found that UNRWA students far outperform their peers in public schools and achieve above-average results in international assessments. However, this educational curriculum has also raised suspicions.
In a study published after the October 7 massacre, IMPACT, a research and policy organization that monitors education around the world, documented statements by more than a dozen UNRWA employees, who publicly praised the atrocities carried out by the Hamas terrorist group on October 7, 2023.
In 2005, then-UNRWA chief Peter Hansen said that UNRWA staff were likely to include Hamas members and sympathizers, given the extent of support for Hamas among the broader Gaza population, but stated that they worked in accordance with UN values while carrying out their work.
Likewise, in 2019, this agency was involved in another scandal. In 2019, "credible and corroborated" corruption allegations emerged against senior UNRWA officials. In an internal review leaked to the press, UNRWA detailed "sexual misconduct, nepotism, retaliation, discrimination and other abuses of authority" among its senior leadership. UNRWA Commissioner General Pierre Krahenbuhl resigned following an internal investigation. The scandal led Switzerland, Belgium and the Netherlands to suspend their funding.
Following the Hamas attack against Israel and the Israeli military response in the Gaza Strip; UNRWA has provided aid and used its facilities to shelter people fleeing shelling and the Israeli ground offensive in the Strip.
However, the United Nations Agency for Palestinian Refugees is experiencing a critical moment in 2024. This agency has opened an investigation into 12 employees suspected of being involved in the Hamas terrorist attacks of October 7.
An increasing number of Western states suspended aid to UNRWA following these accusations. It should be mentioned that the United Kingdom, Finland and Italy suspended financing. Along with them, the United States, Canada and Australia suspended aid to the agency pending an investigation.
UNRWA, this agency created to help refugees, will reach 75 years of age since its founding in 2024. The situation of the refugees and the survival of the agency are linked to the search for a lasting solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. To this end, multiple scandals and donor fatigue have caused the agency to face greater economic and financial difficulties in maintaining its operations. This latest scandal could lead to a restructuring of UNRWA or its definitive dismantling.
Suggested bibliography:
UNRWA’s reckoning: Preserving the UN agency serving Palestinian refugees (2023). Disponible en: https://www.crisisgroup.org/middle-east-north-africa/east-mediterranean-mena/israelpalestine/242-unrwas-reckoning-preserving-un-agency-serving-palestinian-refugees
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