The Trump administration is investigating more than 1,500 current and former employees of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) over alleged ties to Hamas and other terrorist organizations, according to Fox News. The investigation is being led by the USAID Office of Inspector General (OIG), which has already referred 108 individuals to the U.S. State Department for suspension or exclusion from organizations receiving U.S. funding. Additional cases are also being considered for possible criminal referral to the U.S. Department of Justice.

U.S. officials said those referred include current and former UNRWA employees alleged to have participated in Hamas’ October 7 massacre in southern Israel or to have been members of terrorist organizations. A U.S. diplomatic official briefed by the USAID OIG told Fox News Digital that at least 1,500 current and former UNRWA employees remain under investigation, with additional referrals expected as the probe continues.

Among those already barred from future work with U.S. government entities is Hafez Mousa Mohammed Mousa, a UNRWA school principal. According to the USAID OIG, Mousa worked with Hamas’ East Jabaliya Battalion and coordinated communications with other suspected Hamas members during the October 7 massacre.

The investigation also identified additional UNRWA personnel, including school principals, deputy school principals, security personnel, psychologists, social workers and technical professionals. According to the report, those referred include two deputy school principals, one school principal, one Hamas commander, another commander who served as a squad leader in Hamas’ East Jabaliya Battalion, and several employees alleged to have participated in Hamas’ military activities. The report further states that one deputy school principal served as a commander in Hamas’ Nuseirat Battalion, while another allegedly commanded a Hamas unit.

Board of Peace President Eugene Kontorovich called on donor nations to stop funding what he described as “an organization that has become a subsidiary of Hamas, whose employees took part in one of the most barbaric terrorist attacks in human history on Oct. 7, 2023.” He added that donor nations instead have the opportunity to help Palestinians in Gaza find durable solutions and prosperity rather than “endless cycles of dependency and forever refugeehood.”

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)