 "UNRWA is ‘subsidiary of Hamas’, won’t play any role in Gaza aid delivery, says Rubio")
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday said that the UN Palestinian agency is “a subsidiary of Hamas” and will not have any role in distributing aid in the Gaza Strip.
When asked if the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), the UN Palestinian agency, will be part of the US-endorsed plan for Gaza, Rubio said the agency “is not going to play any role” in aid distribution in Gaza, according to The Times of Israel.
Rubio said that the United States is willing to work with the United Nations (UN) but not with UNRWA.
Rubio said, “We’re willing to work with them if they can make it work. But not UNRWA. UNRWA became a subsidiary of Hamas.”
Rubio further said that a collective of groups, including UN agencies other than UNRWA, are currently involved in aid distribution in Gaza.
“The UN is here. We’re seeing the work they’re doing, the World Food Programme. There’s also non-profit NGOs, humanitarian assistance organizations that are involved in this, Samaritan’s Purse. It’s a conglomeration of about 8-12 groups that are here,” said Rubio.
The Trump administration has joined Israel in the opposition to UNRWA. They have accused the agency of sheltering terrorists in Gaza and allowing its facilities in Gaza to be used to launch and facilitate attacks on Israel.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsOver the years, evidence has emerged that Palestinian terrorists have been among UNRWA’s workforce in Gaza. But the UN and the agency’s defenders have stressed that such instances are exceptional cases, not the norm.
Last year, The New York Times reported that documents recovered by Israel in Gaza showed that the UNRWA employed Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad's (PIJ) terrorists in its schools in Gaza. Those documents, whose authenticity could not be independently verified, showed that most of the terrorists employed by the UNRWA were principals or deputy principals at UN-run schools and the rest were school counselors and teachers.
At least one of these terrorists was a commander-level officer within Hamas, according to documents.
The Times reported that documents showed that one Ahmad al-Khatib, a deputy principal at a UN-run elementary school in Gaza, was a squad commander in Khan Younis. The documents said he was an expert in ground combat and had been issued at least a dozen weapons, including a Kalashnikov rifle and hand grenades.
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