BEIRUT: The employment of nine staff working for the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East — who were alleged by Israel to have aided Hamas in the Oct. 7 attacks — was ended in an “exceptional, swift decision” even before corroborating the allegations against them, said the agency’s chief on Friday.
UNRWA’s Commissioner General Philippe Lazzarini explained that he followed a “reverse due process” in terminating the contracts, and did not probe Israel’s claims before the dismissals, reported The Guardian on Friday.
Addressing a press conference in Jerusalem, Lazzarini said: “No, the investigation is going on now,” when asked if he had probed whether there was any evidence against the staff.
“I could have suspended them, but I have fired them. And now I have an investigation, and if the investigation tells us that this was wrong, in that case at the UN we will take a decision on how to properly compensate (them),” he was quoted as saying. The termination decision was due to the explosive nature of the claims, he added.
He said the agency was already facing “fierce and ugly attacks” at a time when it was providing aid to nearly 2 million Palestinians in Gaza.
Lazzarini said: “Indeed, I have terminated without due process because I felt at the time that not only the reputation but the ability of the entire agency to continue to operate and deliver critical humanitarian assistance was at stake if I did not take such a decision.”
Discussing the allegations, the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told a press conference on Thursday: “When there were indications that Hamas had infiltrated UNRWA, I acted immediately in order to guarantee that we do whatever is necessary for UNRWA to be able to avoid any kind of infiltration by Hamas.”
According to the UN chief, the organization received allegations in relation to 12 names, and those allegations were credible.
Guterres said: “Now, if the allegations are credible, you are dealing with a high risk. And when you are dealing with a high risk, and you have rules and regulations that allow you to do so, you, I believe, should do what I did — which was to terminate immediately the contracts based on the so-called best interests of the organization, which is what the rules and regulations allow me to do.”
He elaborated that the investigation team was immediately on the ground, and added: “And if I had made any mistake, it can be corrected in the future.”
He stressed the organization could not run the risk of not acting immediately as the accusations were related to criminal activities that were dangerous.
Guterres revealed that he was surprised to read in the press that the military and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Israel were unwilling to share information with the UN.
He said: “Even worse, I read in the press that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs didn’t expect me to act. I mean, I can’t imagine that this was a trap.”
According to The Guardian’s report, the UN’s Office of Internal Oversight Services is investigating the allegations and is due to report its preliminary findings within weeks. A separate independent review of the agency’s risk management processes is being led by the former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna.
Lazzarini said the agency was operating in a “hostile” environment and it had faced new “restrictions” since Israel’s allegations were made public.
Israeli claims against UNRWA staff were not corroborated before employment was terminated, says Lazzarini
https://arab.news/2n9uv
Israeli claims against UNRWA staff were not corroborated before employment was terminated, says Lazzarini
- Organization’s commissioner general said ‘No, the investigation is going on now,’ when asked if he had probed whether there was any evidence
- Decision to fire staff was due to the explosive nature of the claims
Seven killed in drone strike on Sudan hospital: medical source
- Dilling, in the flashpoint state of South Kordofan, is controlled by the Sudanese army but has been under siege by rival paramilitary forces
- Sunday’s strike comes a day after a drone strike on a UN peacekeeping base killed six Bangladeshi troops in the similarly besieged South Kordofan state capital of Kadugli
PORT SUDAN: A drone strike Sunday on an army hospital in the besieged southern Sudan city of Dilling left “seven civilians dead and 12 injured,” a health worker at the facility told AFP.
The victims included patients and their companions, the medic said on condition of anonymity, explaining that the army hospital “serves the residents of the city and its surroundings, in addition to military personnel.”
Dilling, in the flashpoint state of South Kordofan, is controlled by the Sudanese army but has been under siege by rival paramilitary forces.
Since April 2023, the army has been at war with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), who control swathes of the greater Kordofan region along with their allies, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) faction led by Abdelaziz Al-Hilu.
Sunday’s strike comes a day after a drone strike on a United Nations peacekeeping base killed six Bangladeshi troops in the similarly besieged South Kordofan state capital of Kadugli, some 120 kilometers (75 miles) south of Dilling.
According to the UN, civilians in Dilling are suffering famine conditions, but a lack of access to data has prevented an official declaration.
Across the country, the war has killed tens of thousands of people, displaced 12 million and created the world’s largest hunger and displacement crises.
