Survivors of the October 7 Hamas massacre and families of hostages abducted to Gaza by the terrorist group filed a lawsuit with a U.S. court against a major UNRWA donor, claiming its contributions indirectly supported the murderous attack.
"[N]onprofit organizations generally do good work... But on some very rare occasions, a nonprofit organization finances an international terrorist plot that kills over 1,200 innocent people. This case involves one of those rare occasions," the plaintiffs, represented by the National Jewish Advocacy Center (NJAC), argued in a filing with a Delaware court against UNRWA-USA, the largest private donor in the United States to the United Nations' Palestinian relief agency.
Over the past year, UNRWA-USA has transferred about $3.8 million to the agency, including over $600,000 for UNRWA's education system, which the lawsuit claims "glorifies and teaches terrorism."
The lawsuit comes on the heels of similar actions taken against the Associated Press (AP) and the cryptocurrency exchange Binance.
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UNRWA-USA has not responded to the lawsuit but said it will continue "its tireless efforts to help Palestine refugees in desperate need in Gaza. The need for international aid is more urgent than ever, and UNRWA has a critical role to play in providing it."
UNRWA, which provides aid and essential services to Palestinian refugees in Gaza, the West Bank and across the region, has been in crisis since Israel accused 12 of its 13,000 staff in Gaza of involvement in the Oct. 7 attack on Israel that triggered the war in the Palestinian enclave.
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Archival: UNRWA aid truck entering Gaza through Rafah border crossing
(Photo: REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh/File Photo)
When the allegations emerged, UNRWA fired some staff members, saying it acted to protect the agency's ability to deliver humanitarian assistance, and an independent internal UN investigation was launched.
UNRWA runs schools, healthcare clinics and other social services in Gaza, and distributes humanitarian aid. The UN has said some 3,000 members of staff are still working to deliver aid in the enclave.