Senators push to strip UNRWA of legal immunity, empower terror victims to sue
The United Nations has maintained that UNRWA operates under the immunity provisions of the 1946 Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations
However a recent filing by the US Department of Justice indicated that the Trump administration holds the view that such immunity may not apply in all cases — particularly when allegations of complicity in terrorism arise
UNRWA has long been criticized for its cooperation with Hamas That criticism has increased since Israel revealed a year ago that UNRWA staff participated in the October 7, 2023 Hamas attacks
It then presented a dossier showing that the UNRWA workers who participated in the Hamas massacre, 1. kidnapped a woman 2. handed out ammunition 3. and actively took part in the massacre at Kibbutz Be’eri where 97 people were murdered
Following the Israeli revelations, Guterres announced the creation of a review group, headed by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna, to look into the Israeli allegations
The group, which released its report last April, said it found neutrality-related issues in UNRWA but also claimed that Israel had yet to provide evidence for allegations that a significant number of its staff were members of terrorist organizations
