Review of UNRWA says Israel has yet to provide evidence of terrorism

A group leading a review of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, says Israel has yet to provide evidence to back its allegations that some of UNRWA's staff were involved in the October attack on Israel by Hamas.

The independent review group launched an investigation in February after the Israeli allegations prompted some donor countries to suspend their funding to the agency.

Former French foreign minister Catherine Colonna, who led the group, announced the release of its final report at a news conference on Monday.

The report says: "Israel made public claims that a significant number of UNRWA employees are members of terrorist organizations. However, Israel has yet to provide supporting evidence of this."

The report says, "UNRWA has established a significant number of mechanisms and procedures to ensure compliance with the humanitarian 5 principles, with emphasis on the principle of neutrality."

It also says that UNRWA possesses "a more developed approach to neutrality than other similar UN or NGO entities."

The report notes, however, that "despite this robust framework, neutrality-related issues persist." It proposes measures to address these issues, including enhanced internal oversight and training.

Colonna told reporters that in this critical time, UNRWA plays a vital role in the humanitarian assistance in Gaza.

She called on the international community to be side by side with the agency so that it can perform its mission.