UN staff fired over possible links to 7 October attack

Nine staff members at the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNWRA, may have been involved in the 7 October Hamas-led attack on Israel, the United Nations says.

All nine had their employment terminated, said UN deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq.

He said the UN had completed an investigation following allegations by Israel that UNWRA staff were involved.

About 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken back to Gaza as hostages in the unprecedented assault last autumn.

Mr Haq did not specify what the staff members' precise involvement may have been.

"For us, any participation in the attacks is a tremendous betrayal of the sort of work that we are supposed to be doing on behalf of the Palestinian people," he said.

The UN investigated 19 members of UNWRA staff in all, after Israel alleged that 12 took part in the attack.

Israel later claimed that more than 450 UNWRA staff were members of terrorist groups, but a UN review published in April found Israel had not provided evidence for its claims.

UNRWA, which employs 13,000 people in Gaza, said in March that some of its employees reported being pressured by Israeli authorities into making false statements while in detention.

Most countries withdrew funding for the UN agency because of the Israeli allegations.

In July, the UK joined other countries that had resumed funding since then, leaving the US, UNRWA's single biggest donor, as the only country not to have restarted donations.