Hamas and officials in the Palestinian Authority (PA) reacted with fury and condemnation to the decision of the U.S. and some 15 other countries to suspend funding for the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) over the involvement of several of its employees in the October 7 attack against Israel. The numerous condemnations reflected the Palestinian leadership's perception that UNRWA's role is to perpetuate the Palestinians' refugee status until all the refugees can return to their original homes inside Israel.
Accordingly, Palestinian officials claimed that the terror allegations against UNRWA staffers were part of an Israeli "incitement campaign" aimed at undermining this agency, which embodies "the accumulating memory of the suffering of the Palestinian refugees" and is "a source of the Palestinian refugees' hope for aid and for returning to their homes." Hamas claimed that UNRWA's role is to defend not only the refugees' right to return to their homes but also their right to resist the occupation.
The following are some of the reactions by Hamas, the PA and Fatah to the decision of several countries to suspend funding for UNRWA.
Hamas: UNRWA's Role Is To Support The Palestinians' Right To Resist Occupation
In a January 27, 2024 statement, Hamas condemned UNRWA's decision to terminate the contracts of several of its staffers in Gaza due to their involvement in the October 7 attacks, and added that one of UNRWA's roles is to support the Palestinian resistance. The statement said: "We strongly condemn the description of our people's resistance as terror or as horrific acts, as [claimed in UNRWA's] statement… Furthermore, the political position that UNRWA must adopt, based on its mandate, is one that defends the rights of the refugees it represents – first and foremost their right to protection and to resist the occupation by all legitimate means, as well as their right to return to the homes from which they were forcible expelled."[1]
PA Presidency: The Terror Allegations Against UNRWA Employees Are Part Of An Israeli Campaign To Eliminate The Issue Of The Palestinian Refugees
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A statement issued by the PA presidency condemned Israel's "oppressive campaign" against UNRWA, "whose aim is to eliminate the issue of the Palestinian refugees, which is contrary to [UN] Resolution 302 that established UNRWA… and to all the other international resolutions relevant to the refugee issue… The Palestinian issue will not be resolved without the return of the refugees, in accordance with UN Resolution 194."[2]
PA Prime Minister: UNRWA Is Source Of Palestinian Refugees' Hope To Return To Their Homes
PA Prime Minister Muhammad Shatayyeh said in a press conference that "UNRWA embodies the accumulating memory of the suffering of the Palestinian refugees wherever they are, in Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, the Gaza Strip and the West Bank." He added that, "throughout its years of activity, UNRWA has been a source of hope for the Palestinian refugees – [hope] for aid and for returning to their homes, in accordance with the UN resolutions, and especially Resolution 194."[3]
Fatah Movement: There Will Be No Peace And Stability Without The Return Of The Refugees To The Homes From Which They Were Expelled
A statement issued on January 28, 2024 by the Fatah movement's Commission for Information, Culture and Ideological Mobilization stated that the decision of various countries to stop UNRWA's funding reflected "flagrant bias in favor of the narrative of the Israeli occupier government, which aims to eliminate the refugee issue – and we will not permit this." Calling on the countries to retract their decision, Fatah asserted: "The refugee issue will remain the crux of the Palestinian cause. There will be no peace and stability in the region without the return of the refugees to the homes from which they were expelled, and we will not permit this right to be violated."[4]
Palestinian Writer: UNRWA's Role Will Only End When Every Palestinian Can Return To His Home, His Land And His Field; The Organization Has Political, Moral And Legal Impact On The Right Of Return
In an article in the Palestinian daily Al-Quds, author Baha Rahhal likewise stated that one of the goals of UNRWA is to ensure the return of the Palestinian refugees and their descendants to their original homes. He wrote: "For the Palestinians, the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees was never an end in itself, but rather a means to achieve the goals for which [this agency] was established by the UN in 1949, which are to support the refugees and protect them until they can return to the cities, villages and homes from where they were expelled as a result of the nakba. That is the main goal for which [UNRWA] was established – to actualize the return of all the refugees, their children and their grandchildren… Many of the services that this organization once provided have diminished and decreased, and many refugees no longer benefit from this international organization, but [the fact of] its existence has international political, moral, and legal impact on the [refugees'] historical right [of return]…
"The existence of UNRWA, which was established by virtue of a UN resolution, is linked to the existence of the Palestinian refugees, and its mission will only end when every refugee returns to the city, village or home from which he was expelled because of the nakba and the occupation… UNRWA's main role cannot end, regardless of the narratives and lies invented by the occupation, and its work will not be done until every Palestinian man and woman realizes [his or her right to] return to his or her home, land and field. This is a right that troubles the entity of deceit [i.e., Israel], which tries to eliminate it by every means. Therefore, the countries that decided to stop funding [ UNWRA] must retract their decision…"[5]
[1] T.me/hamas.ps, January 27, 2024.
[2] Wafa.ps, January 28, 2024. It should be noted that the Palestinians regard UN Resolution 194, adopted in December 1948, and especially Article 11 of this resolution, as the basis for their demand to allow the Palestinian refugees to return to their original homes inside Israel. Israel and the Palestinians disagree on the legal interpretation of this resolution, as well as on the number of refugees displaced by the 1948 War and on the status of their descendants who have settled, and in some cases become naturalized, in other countries.
[3] Wafa.ps, January 28, 2024.
[4] Al-Hayat Al-Jadida (PA), January 28, 2024.
[5] Al-Quds (East Jerusalem), January 30, 2024.
