The desperate situation of imminent starvation for large numbers of the Palestinian civilians in Gaza has precipitated action by countries like Canada to continue funding for UNRWA even as any evidence of involvement of the UN Agency with Hamas continues to be assessed.
Reuters reported in US News and World Report that the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees said some employees released into Gaza from Israeli detention reported having been pressured by Israeli authorities into falsely stating that the agency has Hamas links and that staff took part in the Oct. 7 attacks.
UNRWA communications director Juliette Touma said the agency planned to hand the information in the 11-page, unpublished report to agencies inside and outside the U.N. specialised in documenting potential human rights abuses.
"Agency staff members have been subject to threats and coercion by the Israeli authorities while in detention, and pressured to make false statements against the Agency, including that the Agency has affiliations with Hamas and that UNRWA staff members took part in the 7 October 2023 atrocities,” the report says. (UNRWA Report Says Israel Coerced Some Agency Employees to Falsely Admit Hamas Links, 2017)
Reuters could not independently confirm the accounts of coercion of UNRWA staff and mistreatment of detainees, although the allegations of ill-treatment accord with descriptions by Palestinians freed from detention in December, February and March reported by Reuters and other news media.
Asked by Reuters for comment on the range of allegations in the report, an Israeli military spokesperson didn't specifically respond to allegations of UNRWA staff being coerced, but said the Israeli Defense Forces acts in accordance with Israeli and international law to protect the rights of the detainees.
Responding to that assertion about the detainees' credibility, Touma said the report was based on "first-hand testimonies that people told us. In some cases there were clearly some physical impact on people's bodies. And also psychological impact. So this is what's also been documented." (UNRWA Report Says Israel Coerced Some Agency Employees to Falsely Admit Hamas Links, 2017)
The Times of Israel commented in its coverage of the Reuters article on the types of abuse more widely alleged by Palestinian detainees.
In addition to the alleged abuse endured by UNRWA staff members, Palestinian detainees more broadly described allegations of abuse, including beatings, humiliation, threats, dog attacks, sexual violence, and deaths of detainees denied medical treatment, the UNRWA report says. (UNRWA Report Says Israel Coerced Some Agency Employees to Falsely Admit Hamas Links, 2017)
The Hamas-led Oct. 7 assault killed 1,200 people in Israel and resulted in another 253 being abducted, according to Israeli tallies. More than 30,000 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip during the Israeli offensive launched in response, according to health authorities in Hamas-controlled Gaza.
UNRWA has condemned the Oct. 7 attacks, saying the Israeli allegations against the agency - if true - are a betrayal of U.N. values and of the people UNRWA serves.
The U.N. investigators said on Feb. 29 they expected to receive materials soon from Israel relating to its accusations that UNRWA staffers are members of Hamas.
Israel says UNRWA should be shut down.
Reuters has previously interviewed Palestinians detained by Israel during the conflict who have reported mistreatment. They include three men who said they and fellow detainees had been beaten, stripped to their underwear, and burnt with cigarettes. (UNRWA Report Says Israel Coerced Some Agency Employees to Falsely Admit Hamas Links, 2017)
Mistreatment to coerce detainees to support erroneous accusations during a state of war is a reality that remains difficult to prevent. This abuse requires that the veracity of information obtained in this way be treated with suspicion.
References
UNRWA Report Says Israel Coerced Some Agency Employees to Falsely Admit Hamas Links. (2017, November 9). US News and World Report. Retrieved March 9, 2024, from https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2024-03-08/unrwa-report-says-israel-coerced-some-agency-employees-to-falsely-admit-hamas-links
UNRWA report says Israel coerced some agency employees to falsely admit Hamas links. (2017, November 9). Times of Israel. Retrieved March 9, 2024, from https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/unrwa-report-says-israel-coerced-some-agency-employees-to-falsely-admit-hamas-links/
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