Israel has been ‘on top of’ the NRWA for a long time: Jonathan Schanzer
Former counterterrorism analyst Jonathan Schanzer joins ‘Fox & Friends Weekend’ to discuss the latest reports that the UNRWA allegedly was involved in Hamas’ October 7 attack.
Israel has provided the Biden administration with a new dossier with information about how staffers for a United Nations agency assisted or supported the Hamas terror attacks on Oct. 7, Fox News has learned.
The dossier specifically alleges that 12 employees who worked with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) aided in different capacities. According to the dossier, seven UN staffers crossed into Israel on Oct. 7 while other were accused of "participating in a terror activity" or coordinating vehicle movements.
The dossier alleged that some 190 employees of UNRWA in Gaza had ties to Islamist terror groups; however, intelligence estimates provided to The Wall Street Journal put the number at approximately 1,200, or 10% of UNRWA's Gaza workforce.
The document says two joined Hamas terrorists in raiding an Israeli kibbutz and directly participated in violence, another two staffers kidnapped an Israeli woman, holding her hostage in their personal home; and, another UN staffer doled out ammunition to the Hamas terrorists.
AUSTRIA SUSPENDS PAYMENTS TO UNRWA AMID ISRAELI ALLEGATIONS UN WORKERS HELPED, CELEBRATED HAMAS
An Israeli soldier patrols near Kibbutz Beeri in southern Israel on October 12, 2023, close to the place where 270 Israelis were killed by militants during the Supernova music festival on October 7. Thousands of people, both Israeli and Palestinians have died since October 7, 2023, after Palestinian Hamas militants entered Israel in a surprise attack leading Israel to declare war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip enclave the following day. (ARIS MESSINIS/AFP via Getty Images)
The dossier specifies the UN workers involved, providing their photos and a description of their roles at the agency.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the individuals who were alleged to have been involved in the attack are no longer employed.
"Of the 12 people implicated, nine were immediately identified and terminated by the Commissioner-General of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini; one is confirmed dead, and the identity of the two others is being clarified," said Guterres.
FILE PHOTO: A truck, marked with United Nations 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, November 27, 2023. (REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh/File Photo)
He also said any UN employee that is found to have been involved in terror acts "will be held accountable, including through criminal prosecution."
Of the 12 workers, nine were teachers and one a social worker. Ten were specifically listed as having ties to Hamas and one to the Islamic Jihad terrorist group.
Police Officer walks near a police station that was destroyed after a battle between Israeli troops and Hamas militants that have take the station on October 8, 2023 in Sderot, Israel. (Amir Levy/Getty Images)
The allegations against the UNRWA staffers ignited worldwide backlash and prompted a dozen Western countries to suspend payments to the agency.
The countries that paused payments to the aid agency include: the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Australia, Finland, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Canada, Japan and Austria.
Austria was the most recent country to join the list, announcing their decision on Monday.
"We call on UNRWA and the United Nations to conduct a comprehensive, swift and complete investigation into the allegations," the Austrian ministry said in a statement.
A picture taken from the southern Israeli city of Sderot on October 25, 2023, shows smoke ascending over the northern Gaza Strip following an Israeli strike, amid the ongoing battles between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas. (RONALDO SCHEMIDT/AFP via Getty Images)
The contribution from these countries made up more than 60% of UNRWA’s total budget in 2022.
UNRWA provides basic services for millions of Palestinians across the Middle East but, with the majority of their financial support now in doubt, the agency said it will be forced to halt operations within weeks.
Visitors look at photos of Israeli people who were killed during Hamas militants attack on Oct. 7 and those who died during the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip, displayed on a giant screen at the National Library in Jerusalem, Israel, Sunday, Jan. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)
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Communications Director Juliette Touma said if the funding is not restored, then the agency could be forced to stop its support in Gaza by the end of February.
Fox News' Yonat Friling, Gillian Turner and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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