At least 24 employees of the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) – all working at different schools – were members of Hamas or the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, documents obtained by Israeli forces and shared with The New York Times reveal.
Among those identified was Ahmad al-Khatib, who served as a deputy principal at a UNRWA elementary school while simultaneously holding the position of squad commander in the Qassam Brigades, according to internal Hamas records. Documents show he was equipped with multiple weapons, including a Kalashnikov and hand grenades.
The investigation by The New York Times found that the majority of these UNRWA employees held senior administrative positions – serving as principals or deputy principals – while others worked as school counselors and teachers. Most of those identified were fighters in the Qassam Brigades, according to the records.
UNRWA, which employed approximately 13,000 people and operated 288 schools across Gaza before the Oct. 7 attack on Israel, is mandated to maintain neutrality in conflict zones, including preventing terrorists from joining its staff or using its facilities.
The records were part of a larger collection of Hamas documents obtained by Israeli forces during their operations in Gaza, with the documents containing identifying information that matches UNRWA's database.
Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA's commissioner general, told The Times that the agency faces challenges in investigating such allegations, noting they lack resources for independent investigations. "We have always been clear that we are not an intelligence or security type of organization," he said in an interview.
The documents reveal specific cases where UNRWA retained employees even after Israel provided warnings about their terror affiliations. In one instance, Naji Abu Aziz, who serves as principal of the Khuza'a Prep Boys School, was identified by Israel as a Hamas operative in 2011. Records later seized by Israeli forces listed him as a member of Hamas' military manufacturing department's chemistry unit.
The investigation also uncovered evidence of weapons training among some UNRWA teachers. Records show that Ayman al-Alami, a teacher, participated in a Hamas rocket-launching training course in 2023, while another educator, Mustafa al-Farra, was issued an AK-47, according to documents bearing the Qassam Brigades' letterhead.
Israeli officials express frustration with the UN's response to these findings. "The UN seems intent on portraying this problem as a few bad apples, rather than acknowledging that the tree is rotten," said Amir Weissbrod, the Israeli foreign ministry's deputy director for international organizations, in comments to The Times.
James Lindsay, who served as UNRWA's general counsel until 2007, noted that the UN has no way to verify that its employees are not members of Hamas or other terror groups. "The UN has been unable and or unwilling to eliminate Hamas militants and their supporters, as well as those from other terrorist groups, from their ranks," Lindsay said.
