The UNRWA school-turned-shelter in the Gaza Strip was filled not with children studying, but with exhausted, hungry and traumatized displaced families.
An independent panel today released a high-profile report on the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), which made 50 recommendations and noted that the Israeli authorities had not yet provided evidence to support their claim that United Nations staff were linked to terrorist organizations.
"Israel openly claims that many of UNRWA employees are members of terrorist organizations," the report said. However, Israel has yet to provide evidence to support this". The thrust of the 54-page final report is an independent review of the mechanisms and procedures for ensuring that UNRWA adheres to the principle of humanitarian neutrality.
The UN Secretary-General received the final report over the weekend. A few days after Israel announced the charges against UNRWA, he appointed the independent review team, headed by former French Foreign Minister Colonna. With 30,000 employees, UNRWA serves 5.9 million Palestine refugees in the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and war-torn Gaza.
The long-awaited final report found that UNRWA, established by the UN General Assembly in 1949, had extensive tools to ensure that its work remained impartial and that it regularly provided Israel with a list of employees, and that "since 2011, the Government of Israel has not informed UNRWA of any concerns relating to any UNRWA staff on these lists." ”
UNRWA has the "most detailed" rules in the United Nations system
Speaking to reporters at UN Headquarters after the report's release, Colonna said: "The set of rules, mechanisms and procedures developed [by UNRWA] is the most exhaustive in the United Nations system, precisely because working in such a complex and sensitive environment is such a difficult issue." What needs to be improved will be improved. The implementation of these measures will help UNRWA to fulfil its mandate. ”
She strongly encouraged "the international community to work side by side with the institution so that it can fulfil its mission and overcome its challenges." This is the purpose of the review. ”
During the nine-week review of existing mechanisms, the team conducted more than 200 interviews, met with the Israeli and Palestinian authorities, and directly approached 47 countries and organizations, making 50 recommendations on issues ranging from education to a new review process for staff recruitment.
The report guides the new United Nations Plan of Action
The report's recommendations included the establishment of a centralized "Neutral Investigation Unit", the introduction of an up-to-date code of ethics and related training to all staff, and the identification and implementation of additional methods for screening UNRWA applicants at an early stage of the recruitment process.
The report also recommends exploring the possibility of third-party monitoring of sensitive projects and establishing a framework with interested donors to ensure transparency.
In a statement on Monday, a spokesman for the UN Secretary-General said the UN Secretary-General accepted the recommendations in the Colonna report. He agreed with Commissioner-General Philip. Lazzarini commented that UNRWA, with the support of the Secretary-General, would develop an action plan to implement the recommendations in the final report. "
The allegations put UNRWA in financial difficulty
According to the final report of the review team, the Israeli allegations against UNRWA resulted in approximately 4. $500 million in funding was suspended.
The immediate impact of the Israeli allegations rapidly weakened UNRWA's ability to continue its work. The Agency operated entirely on voluntary contributions, but major donors, including the United States, cancelled or suspended funding to the Agency.
In April this year, the United States Government decided to ban funding to UNRWA until at least 2025, but other donors have already pledged additional funding or resumed contributions.
The new report recommends increasing the frequency and transparency of UNRWA's communication with donors on its financial situation and on allegations of neutrality and irregularities. The review team recommended regular updates and "integrity briefings" for donors interested in supporting UNRWA on integrity and related issues.
近东救济工程处/Muhammad Hinnavi
Findings on UNRWA schools
The report said the UN agency fulfilled its obligation to ensure the neutrality of its 1,000 facilities, including schools, health centers and warehouses. The report also said that "security and capability challenges may hamper" existing due diligence mechanisms.
The review team said that UNRWA's 20,000 educators "have been working to ensure educational neutrality" in providing primary and preparatory education to 500,000 students in 706 schools, including Gaza. The education system in Gaza has been damaged during the ongoing conflict, and all children are now out of school.
Accusations against anti-Semitic textbooks
The review team investigated the "persistent criticism of the alleged presence of hate speech, incitement to violence and anti-Semitism in the Palestinian Authority's educational materials, primarily from Israel", and reviewed three major international assessments and studies.
Two reports identified biased and non-compliant content, but provided no evidence of anti-Semitism, according to the report. The third is Eckert's report, which points to two examples of showing anti-Semitic content, but states that one of them has been removed and the other substantially modified.
Accordingly, the report recommends a number of actions, including a review of the content of all textbooks with the host country, Israel and the Palestinian Authority.
UNRWA remains a key "lifeline" for Palestine
The report states that "in the absence of a political solution between Israel and the Palestinians, UNRWA remains critical in providing life-saving humanitarian assistance and basic social services to Palestine refugees in Gaza, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and the West Bank, particularly in the areas of health and education" and is "irreplaceable and indispensable for the human and economic development of the Palestinians".
"In addition, many people see UNRWA as a humanitarian lifeline. According to the report.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres said on Monday that he looked forward to the cooperation of the donor community, host countries and staff to fully implement the final recommendations of the new report.
"Looking ahead, the Secretary-General calls on all stakeholders to actively support UNRWA as it is a lifeline for Palestine refugees in the region," the spokesman for the Secretary-General said. ”
In late March, Israel announced that it would reject UNRWA's request for assistance to northern Gaza, according to United Nations officials. Famine is occurring in northern Gaza as the Israeli authorities continue to block or severely delay the delivery of life-saving aid. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) launched an emergency appeal for Gaza last week.
One of two surveys
Immediately after Israel filed charges against UNRWA at the end of January, the United Nations agency dismissed the staff members concerned and called for a prompt and impartial investigation. The Secretary-General of the United Nations commissioned two investigations.
The Secretary-General appointed an independent review team, led by Ms. Colonna, to conduct a study by the Raoul Wallenberg Institute in Sweden, the Michelson Institute in Norway and the Danish Institute for Human Rights to investigate the process by which UNRWA ensured the neutrality of its work.
At the same time, the Secretary-General of the United Nations ordered the Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS), the highest oversight body of the United Nations, to investigate the veracity of the Israeli allegations against 12 UNRWA staff members.
From the outset, OIOS investigators engaged with interested Member States, visited UNRWA headquarters in Jordan and reviewed preliminary information received by the Agency from the Israeli authorities and various sources, including information disseminated through the media and other public channels.
The OIOS investigation is ongoing.