The agency has been at the center of controversy since Israel accused 12 of its 30,000 regional employees of involvement in the October 7 terrorist attacks carried out by Hamas.
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The Secretary General of the UN, Antonio Guterres, announced Monday February 5 the creation of an independent committee responsible for assessing the “neutrality” of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) and its functioning. This decision follows Israeli accusations against 12 of its employees.
The group will be led by the former French Minister of Foreign Affairs, Catherine Colonna, in collaboration with three research centers (Raoul Wallenberg Institute in Sweden, Chr. Michelsen Institute in Norway, and the Danish Institute for Human Rights). UNRWA has been at the center of controversy since Israel accused 12 of its 30,000 regional employees of involvement in the October 7 attacks carried out by the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas.
The objective of the evaluation group appointed on Monday is to “determine whether the agency is doing everything in its power to ensure its neutrality and respond to accusations of serious abuses where appropriate”. He must submit an interim report to Antonio Guterres by the end of March, then by the end of April a final report which must in particular, if necessary, make recommendations for “improve and strengthen” the mechanisms in place.
