Victims of October 7 Attack Sue UNRWA for $1 Billion, Accusing It of Aiding Hamas

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In a landmark legal move, over 100 victims and their families of the brutal October 7 Hamas attack on Israel have filed a lawsuit against the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), demanding $1 billion in damages. The 167-page lawsuit, submitted in the Southern District of New York, accuses UNRWA of aiding and abetting the terror group by allowing its facilities to be used for weapons storage, permitting tunnels and command centers to be constructed under its sites, and indirectly funding Hamas through its payroll practices.

 

 

Named as defendants in the lawsuit are current and former UNRWA leaders, including Philippe Lazzarini, the agency's head, as well as Pierre Krähenbühl, Filippo Grandi, Leni Stenseth, Sandra Mitchell, Margot Ellis, and Gréta Gunnarsdóttir. Krähenbühl is now the director-general of the International Committee of the Red Cross, and Grandi serves as the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

 

The plaintiffs allege that UNRWA's policy of paying employees in US dollars, which must be converted to Israeli shekels in Gaza, resulted in Hamas-controlled money changers taking a significant cut of these transactions. This practice, the lawsuit claims, funneled substantial funds into Hamas's coffers, enabling the purchase of weapons and other materials used in terror activities.

 

 

"Hamas did not carry out these atrocities without assistance," the lawsuit asserts. "Defendants were warned repeatedly that their policies were directly providing assistance to Hamas," yet they continued these practices despite the warnings. The October 7 attack, in which 3,000 Hamas terrorists launched a cross-border assault resulting in the deaths of over 1,200 civilians in southern Israel and the abduction of 251 individuals, is described in the lawsuit as a foreseeable consequence of UNRWA's actions.

 

One of the prominent plaintiffs, Ditza Heiman, who was abducted by Hamas on October 7 and later released in a prisoner exchange, reported that her captor was a teacher in an UNRWA school and that she was fed UNRWA-issued food rations during her captivity. "The fact that Hamas ruled Gaza was not an excuse for UNRWA to hire and finance terrorists, but it should have ensured that UNRWA took additional precautions," Heiman told Ynet.

 

 

Other plaintiffs include Gadi and Reuma Kedem, who lost their daughter Tamar, son-in-law Yonatan, and three grandchildren—Shahar, Arbel, and Omer—in the attack on their home in Kibbutz Nir Oz. Yonatan's mother, Carol, was also killed. "There is no pain in the world that compares to burying your children and grandchildren who were murdered and strangled in their own home," Gadi Kedem said. He emphasized the need to hold UNRWA accountable for its role in empowering Hamas. "UNRWA strengthened Hamas and transferred funds and financed the murders, while being a full partner in the growth of Hamas terrorists."

 

The lawsuit also points to the use of Hamas-approved textbooks in UNRWA schools, which allegedly indoctrinate children with ideologies of hatred and genocide, thus serving as a recruitment tool for the terror group. The plaintiffs stress that their legal action is not intended to serve as a platform for political grievances but is a pursuit of monetary compensation for their injuries based on traditional tort principles.

 

 

UNRWA has not responded to requests for comment from various media outlets, including the UK’s Jewish Chronicle and Fox News, which first reported on the lawsuit. The agency's Director Lazzarini, meanwhile, has recently called for resistance against Israeli efforts to have UNRWA disbanded, arguing that such actions undermine the multilateral system supported by the majority of UN member states.

 

 

The controversy surrounding UNRWA's operations is not new. Israel has long criticized the agency for allegedly turning a blind eye to Hamas activities and has accused it of employing individuals affiliated with Hamas and other terror groups. In February, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant claimed that a significant number of UNRWA employees in Gaza were linked to Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, with some taking active roles in the October 7 massacre.

 

As the lawsuit progresses, it could have profound implications for UNRWA and its future operations, potentially reshaping the international community's approach to aid and governance in conflict zones. The legal battle underscores the complex interplay between humanitarian assistance and security, highlighting the dire need for stringent oversight and accountability in regions plagued by terrorism.

 

Credit: TOI 2024-06-26

 

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