For weeks, Israel has claimed that UNRWA personnel played a role in the October 7 Hamas attacks.
But this time the accusations must be supported by detailed evidence, since they led to the dismissal of 12 members of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, as well as triggering a harsh reaction from the leaders of the Glass Palace, but also from Washington and Brussels.
“The Israeli authorities have provided information on the alleged involvement of several employees in the terrible attacks on October 7. To protect the agency's ability to provide humanitarian assistance, I have made the decision to immediately terminate the contracts of these individuals and launch an investigation to establish the truth without delay", announced the general commissioner of UNRWA Philippe Lazzarini, reiterating his condemnation of the Hamas attacks and speaking of "shocking accusations".
Lazzarini did not reveal the number of members affected by the accusations, nor the nature of this alleged involvement, but assured that "any employee involved in acts of terrorism will be held accountable, including through criminal proceedings".
While Secretary General Antonio Guterres said he was "horrified by the news".
A statement from the spokesperson "asked Lazzarini to swiftly investigate the matter and ensure that any UNRWA employee who participated in or facilitated the attacks is immediately dismissed and referred for potential criminal prosecution."
The news about the United Nations agency, which has around 13,000 Palestinian employees in the Gaza Strip, comes as relations between the UN and Israel are at their lowest, with the Jewish state having harshly attacked the UN on several occasions and its agencies.
And the same Secretary General Guterres who, while condemning the Hamas massacres without appeal, at the same time pointed the finger at Tel Aviv for the "collective punishment" of the Palestinians and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's rejection of the two-state solution.
Meanwhile, the US also said it was concerned by the allegations against UNRWA and the US State Department announced that it had "temporarily suspended additional funding to the agency while it examines this news and the measures the United Nations is taking to address it".
Spokesman Matthew Miller said Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with Guterres to emphasize the need for a thorough and swift investigation into the matter.
Then he wanted to underline that UNRWA "plays a fundamental role in providing life-saving assistance to Palestinians: their work has saved lives and it is important that the agency addresses these allegations and takes all appropriate corrective measures, including reviewing policies and existing procedures".
Brussels, through the EU Commission and the High Representative for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell, also expressed "extreme concern" over the accusations, reiterating "its strongest condemnation of the attacks by Hamas terrorists against Israel, which have no justification ".
"UNRWA has played a key role in supporting vulnerable Palestinian refugees in accessing vital services for many years and is a crucial partner of the international community, including the EU - reads the statement -. We are in contact with the UNRWA and we expect it to provide full transparency on the allegations and take immediate action against the personnel involved."
Israel, for its part, has once again lashed out against the UN agency.
Government spokesperson Eylon Levy accused UNRWA of having purposely announced the news while world attention was focused on the International Court of Justice: "Any other day - he wrote in X - this would have been a major headline, the evidence of complicity of UN employees with Hamas".
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