A new report has brought to light allegations of widespread theft of humanitarian aid by staff members of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) in Gaza. 

As per UN Watch, a chat room operated by former UNRWA employee Haitham al-Sayyed has become a platform for current and former staff to express their frustration with senior UNRWA officials in their abuses and the agency’s apparent unwillingness to address the issue. Al-Sayyed himself claims he was laid off from UNRWA in 2016 after publicly exposing the agency’s attempt to hide a school map that erased Israel’s existence.

Posts shared on the forum detailed various instances of the alleged theft, with employees claiming to have witnessed colleagues stealing and reselling humanitarian items on the black market such as baby diapers and food. Some staff members even accuse UNRWA directors of being complicit in the thefts. Disturbingly, the report also highlights the presence of antisemitism in the discussions surrounding the stolen aid, with some members comparing the thieves to Jews.

Israel has long accused the UNRWA of being unable to manage aid distribution effectively and, in some instances, even complicit with Hamas. However, the Arab ‘aid ‘humanitarian’ organization has denied these accusations, stating that it has no control over the group and emphasizing the need for better cooperation in aid delivery, according to the report.