Following a ruling by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague that Israel must allow UNRWA to resume operations in the Gaza Strip, a senior Israeli official clarified that such a move is out of the question and there are no plans to change the current policy.
In an interview with Kan Reshet Bet, the official explained, “From our perspective, UNRWA will not set foot in Gaza again. Israel’s experience with UN agencies in Gaza has shown that they have either completely failed in their mission or were effectively influenced and operated by Hamas.”
He added that a clear message on the matter has also been conveyed to the Americans.
“We hope the United States will see eye to eye with Israel on this issue,” the official added.
In Wednesday’s ruling, issued at the request of the United Nations, the court determined that Israel had not provided sufficient evidence to prove that a significant portion of UNRWA employees were operating on behalf of Hamas, nor did it provide proofs that the agency is not a neutral body.
In January 2024, the Wall Street Journal reported that around 10% of UNRWA employees in Gaza have ties to terror groups.
At least 12 UNRWA employees participated directly in the October 7 massacre: Six were part of the wave of terrorists who breached the border fence and participated in the assault, two helped kidnap Israelis, two were tracked to sites where scores of Israelis were massacred, and other coordinated logistics for the attack - including the procurement of weapons.
Intelligence reports also noted that a 13th UNRWA employee not clearly affiliated with a terror group also entered Israel on October 7, WSJ noted.
According to the report, "around 1,200 of UNRWA’s roughly 12,000 employees in Gaza have links to Hamas or Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and about half have close relatives" who belong to the terror groups.
WSJ quoted a senior Israeli official as saying, "UNRWA's problem is not just ‘a few bad apples’ involved in the October 7 massacre. The institution as a whole is a haven for Hamas’ radical ideology." An UNRWA spokesperson declined to comment to WSJ.