ISRAEL still hasn’t provided evidence of its claims that employees of the UN’s relief agency in Gaza are members of terrorists organizations, an independent review has found.
The report by former French foreign minister Catherine Colonna, which was commissioned by the UN in the wake of the allegations from Israel, found that UNRWA regularly handed over a list of its employees to Israel for vetting and that “the Israeli government has not informed Unrwa of any concerns relating to any Unrwa staff based on these staff lists since 2011”.
The UK and other nations halted funding amid an investigation into allegations the agency’s workers colluded with militant group Hamas, though some have since restored their cashflow.
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Famine is looming in Gaza, with aid organisations and governments criticising bottlenecks at the Israeli border for restricting the flow of food support.
The UK Government, meanwhile, previously said that no funding is due from Britain to UNRWA until the end of April and that it is awaiting the findings of both the Colonna report and a UN investigation into the October 7 claims.
Israel previously alleged that 12 UNRWA staff took part in the Hamas-led Oct. 7 attacks, which triggered the war on Gaza.
In March, Israel then claimed over 450 UNRWA staff were military operatives in Gaza terrorist groups.
The Colonna review, which was drafted in conjunction with three Nordic research institutes, says that Israel has yet to substantiate any such claims.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres accepted the recommendations, with his spokesperson calling on all countries to actively support UNRWA since it is "a lifeline for Palestine refugees in the region".
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