US urges donors to abandon UNRWA funding as UN defends agency's mission

The United Nations defended its entreaty for countries to support backing nan United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees successful nan Near East (UNRWA), aft nan United States based on that donors should extremity supporting an agency it claims has been infiltrated by Hamas and alternatively nonstop its money toward nan Security Council-backed Board of Peace. 

Speaking astatine UNRWA’s yearly pledging convention successful early July, U.S. Ambassador Jeff Bartos accused personnel states of repeating a grounded attack and said nan agency had go a "subsidiary of Hamas."

"Doing nan aforesaid point complete and over, expecting a different consequence is nan meaning of insanity," Bartos said. "And yet, present we are again, different yearly pledging convention for UNRWA. Same speeches … aforesaid condemnation of Israel, aforesaid failures to condemn Hamas."

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UNRWA's office successful Gaza City, Gaza, Feb. 21, 2024. (Dawoud Abo Alkas/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Bartos urged governments to extremity backing UNRWA schools successful Gaza, which he accused of indoctrinating children successful hatred of Jews and glorifying terrorism. He besides cited allegations that UNRWA labor participated successful nan Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, onslaught against Israel.

"You tin take to money incitement, coercion and stagnation, aliases you tin take to money nan Board of Peace, giving Gazans a way to peace, prosperity and real, durable change," Bartos said.

The Board of Peace is simply a U.S.-led assemblage created nether President Donald Trump’s Gaza scheme to oversee transitional governance, reconstruction and semipermanent improvement alongside a Palestinian technocratic administration. The management argues it offers a amended replacement to UNRWA by shifting assistance distant from what it says is simply a Hamas-infiltrated strategy and toward accountable governance and economical recovery.

Asked by Fox News Digital why U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres was asking countries to put further money into UNRWA alternatively than support nan Board of Peace, U.N. spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric defended nan agency’s grounds and mandate.

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A Palestinian female wears a greenish Hamas scarf attends a objection against a U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) backing gap, extracurricular nan UNRWA Gaza Headquarters successful Gaza City, Aug. 16, 2015.  (The Associated Press)

Dujarric said Wednesday that UNRWA officials, including erstwhile Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini and acting main Christian Saunders, had taken "strong action" erstwhile presented pinch facts concerning imaginable infiltration by group aligned pinch violent organizations.

"UNRWA doesn’t run done a benignant of immaculate conception," Dujarric said successful a property briefing. "It is location because location is simply a instruction fixed to it by the General Assembly, and we proceed to fulfill that mandate. It has a very important domiciled to play connected nan humanitarian front."

Dujarric added that nan Security Council solution supporting nan Board of Peace besides calls connected nan United Nations to present humanitarian assistance and lead humanitarian activities successful Gaza.

"UNRWA is portion of that system," he said.

The U.S. position contrasted sharply pinch those of respective European governments.

At nan aforesaid pledging event, nan United Kingdom announced £23 cardinal successful support for UNRWA. 

British Ambassador James Kariuki called nan agency "indispensable" to providing basal services to Palestinian refugees crossed Gaza, nan West Bank, Syria, Lebanon and Jordan.

France besides reiterated what its typical described arsenic "full support" for nan agency, saying UNRWA continues to supply indispensable assistance contempt increasing obstacles. France said it had provided €123 cardinal to UNRWA since 2023 and would denote its 2026 publication soon.

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A Palestinian man collects nutrient from a humanitarian assistance distribution constituent successful Beit Lahia, bluish Gaza, July 20, 2025.  (Ahmad Salem/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The French typical said allegations against UNRWA had been taken earnestly and based on that nan agency was implementing recommendations from nan Colonna reappraisal intended to fortify neutrality and transparency. France besides supported an eventual, gradual transportation of UNRWA’s responsibilities to betterment and fortify Palestinian institutions arsenic portion of a broader governmental settlement.

The backing conflict comes arsenic UN Watch is demanding that Guterres waive immoderate immunity enjoyed by Lazzarini, whose word has ended, truthful nationalist authorities tin analyse allegations that he ignored repeated warnings astir Hamas infiltration.

In a June 30 letter, nan Geneva-based watchdog claimed that it had provided Lazzarini and his management pinch grounds involving teachers, schoolhouse principals, national leaders and different labor who allegedly supported aliases were affiliated pinch Hamas and different violent groups. It based on that nan claims create grounds for an independent criminal investigation.

Hillel Neuer, executive head of UN Watch, told Fox News Digital that his statement told Lazzarini "that location are supporters of coercion — successful immoderate cases, existent members of Hamas — moving arsenic teachers, moving arsenic schoolhouse principals," Neuer said, "Not 1 bad apple, not a fewer rotten apples, but nan problem of support for coercion … was systematic."

Neuer said waiving Lazzarini’s immunity would not magnitude to a uncovering of guilt but would let prosecutors to trial nan evidence.

"The investigation whitethorn beryllium there’s nary evidence, and it’s over," Neuer said. "But astatine slightest you should waive immunity to let an investigation. The U.N. said that if anyone was recovered involved, ‘we will cooperate.’ Now is nan test."

Asked whether Guterres would see waiving Lazzarini’s immunity, Dujarric did not reply directly.

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Philippe Lazzarini, Commissioner-General of nan United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees successful nan Near East (UNRWA) holds property convention successful Jerusalem connected October 27, 2023.  (Mostafa Alkharouf/Anadolu via Getty Images)

"As acold arsenic I know, UN Watch is not a judicial authority," he said. "We person always, arsenic a matter of principle, cooperated pinch investigations by nationalist authorities."

UN Watch’s missive argues that immunity exists to protect nan interests of nan United Nations alternatively than supply a individual use to an official, and that it should beryllium waived wherever it would obstruct justness without harming nan organization.

Fox News Digital contacted UNRWA for remark but did not person a response.