Dozens of people protested on Wednesday outside the Beirut office of UNRWA, the United Nations’ “Palestinian refugee agency”, after it put a staff member on administrative leave over possible violations of staff conduct regulations, Reuters reported. School teacher Fathi al-Sharif was put on leave for three months without pay as the UN agency investigated alleged activities "that are in violation of the Agency's regulatory framework governing staff conduct," the agency told Reuters in a statement. UNRWA said it could not discuss further details and would not say whether he was accused of membership of an armed group. Sharif spoke at the protest on Wednesday, where a crowd had gathered to support him. Several people told Reuters that he had been accused of links to the Hamas terrorist organization. Created in 1949, UNRWA supplies aid to more than three million of the five million registered “Palestinian refugees” in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and territories assigned to the Palestinian Authority. However, it is also notorious for its anti-Israel activities. During the 2014 counterterrorism Operation Protective Edge, Hamas rockets were discovered inside a school building run by UNRWA. More recently, Israel said that 12 UNRWA staff members had taken part in Hamas’ October 7 attack. Among other things, Israel said those workers kidnapped a woman, handed out ammunition and actively took part in the massacre at Kibbutz Be’eri, where 97 people were murdered. In the wake of those findings, the US and a host of other countries announced they would temporarily pause funding to UNRWA. An independent review group appointed by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to look into Israel’s claims said last week that UNRWA is doing everything within its power to ensure neutrality, but has also identified critical areas that still need to be addressed. UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini has said that the UN agency had launched an investigation into the employees in question, but he has also insisted he had no knowledge of how deeply Hamas is involved in UNRWA, and has accused Israel of "a deliberate and concerted campaign" aimed at ending UNRWA’s work. Related articles: France to resume funding to UNRWA 'UNRWA is dead to the United States' Hostage family members block entrance to UNRWA in Jerusalem 'We have enough funds to operate through May' The Arab residents of Gaza consider Gaza part of "Palestine," which makes their claim to being refugees an oxymoron. Lebanese residents who are registered as “Palestinian refugees” and their descendants who were born in that country reside in residential neighborhoods known as "refugee camps", have limited work options and are refused citizenship. Lebanon refuses to naturalize the “Palestinian refugees” and has stressed the need to work for their return to their country of origin, which Palestinian Arabs claim is Israel.