A U.N. probe into its staffers' involvement in the Oct. 7 attack against Israel dismissed key intelligence—including intercepted audio recordings and cell phone data—that connected those staffers to Hamas, a Washington Free Beacon review of confidential U.N. documents found.
Investigators with the U.N. Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) looked into 19 U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) employees' ties to Hamas based on Israeli intelligence and produced a report, which the United Nations has not released publicly and which the Free Beacon reviewed. It portrays the intelligence as likely authentic yet deems it "insufficient" to support the firings of 10 UNRWA staffers. This was the case with an alleged "Hamas platoon commander" and a second "Hamas operative," both of whom Israel identified through intercepted phone calls and text messages.
The revelation suggests UNRWA may still employ Hamas terrorists who could play a role on the ground if the international organization is allowed to participate in aid distribution in Gaza. As the Free Beacon has reported, at least one senior U.N. official who wishes to restore UNRWA’s control of aid has angled for a prominent position in President Donald Trump’s plans for the territory. UNRWA staffers with ties to Hamas who remain in good standing with the international organization, meanwhile, could transfer to other U.N. agencies.
The United Nations cited this investigation in August when it announced it would not fire 10 of the employees Israel identified. U.N. bodies have used the results to claim reports of UNRWA involvement with Hamas are "not substantiated," as the International Court of Justice did when it ruled late last month that UNRWA should reassume control of humanitarian aid deliveries in post-war Gaza, over Israel’s objections.
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