US intelligence confirms some claims about UNRWA staff ties to Hamas: report

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A new U.S. intelligence assessment found it is likely that some employees of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) participated in Hamas' terrorist attacks in Israel on Oct. 7, but it also said the U.S. can't verify Israeli allegations that many United Nations workers have links to militant groups, the Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday.

The Biden administration recently paused funding to the controversial U.N. agency, which supplies aid to Palestinian refugees, after Israel shared findings alleging that at least 12 UNRWA employees were "involved" in the Hamas attacks and kidnappings that sparked the ongoing war in Gaza. The U.S. government had earmarked $51 million for fiscal 2024 prior to the pause.

"Israeli intelligence agencies said they concluded that 10% of all UNRWA workers had some kind of affiliation, usually political, with Hamas," the Wall Street Journal reported. "A far smaller number had ties to the militant wings of Hamas and another group, Palestinian Islamic Jihad. UNRWA employs around 12,000 people in Gaza."

In the new report, which the WSJ reported was completed last week, the U.S. National Intelligence Council said it assessed the allegations that 12 UNRWA staffers participated in the Oct. 7 attack as credible.

The Office of the Director of National Intelligence declined to comment.

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