US District Judge Analisa Torres in Manhattan ruled that the UNRWA has “absolute immunity” because it is a subsidiary of the United Nations (UN), which is shielded from such suits under international law.
In a decision made public on Wednesday, Torres also rejected arguments that UNRWA is merely a “specialised agency” not entitled to full protection, citing UN lawyers who said the body remains under the authority of the UN General Assembly, which can alter or even dissolve it.
The lawsuit was brought on behalf of more than 100 Israeli plaintiffs, including survivors of the 7 October attack, families of those killed, and at least one captive.
It accused UNRWA of enabling Hamas to build “terror infrastructure” by channelling funds through Hamas-linked money changers.
Lawyer Gavriel Mairone, representing the plaintiffs, said they would appeal.
UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini and several current and former officials were also named as defendants.
Their lawyers have not commented.
Israel's accusations and UNRWA's response
Israel has long claimed that UNRWA maintains ties with Palestinian resistance groups.
Tel Aviv submitted a list of 100 alleged Hamas “operatives” on UNRWA’s payroll but failed to provide substantiation.
“UNRWA has requested on numerous occasions for cooperation from the Government of Israel by providing information and evidence to substantiate the accusations,” the agency said in a document titled Facts Versus Claims. “To date, UNRWA has not received any response, nor has the Government of Israel shared any evidence.”
At the request of the UN Secretary-General, an internal oversight probe was conducted last year to review Israeli allegations.
The investigation found no evidence in one case, insufficient evidence in nine others, and possible involvement in nine cases where staff contracts were immediately terminated.
In 2024, the Biden administration had urged the court to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing that UNRWA was immune. However, in April, the Trump administration reversed that position, stating that the agency and its officials “must answer these allegations in American courts.”
Israeli war on Gaza and humanitarian collapse
Hamas’s Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, launched on 7 October 2023, killed about 1,200 people in Israel.
In turn, Israel started a genocidal war on the strip, killing over 66,000 Palestinians and wounding nearly 170,000, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. UN bodies say these figures remain the most credible available.
Nearly 90 percent of Gaza’s 2.3 million population have been forcibly displaced by Tel Aviv multiple times, and much of the territory has been levelled by relentless Israeli bombardment.
Homes, schools, hospitals and water networks have been destroyed, while Israel’s months-long deadly land, sea, and air blockade of food, fuel, and medicine has manufactured a famine in Gaza, the first to be declared by the UN in the Middle East.
The UN warned that hundreds of thousands remain at risk of starvation, especially children and the elderly, with over 450 Palestinians dying of starvation, including at least 150 children.
The International Court of Justice is examining whether Israel is committing genocide, while the International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and senior Israeli officials over war crimes.
Role of UNRWA
Founded in 1949, UNRWA provides education, healthcare, and relief to millions of Palestinian refugees in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon, almost entirely funded by UN member states.
Despite its central role, the agency has faced intense political pressure.
Several Western governments suspended contributions this year after Israel alleged that a handful of staff were linked to the 7 October attack—claims still unproven.
Humanitarian groups warn that cutting UNRWA’s funding would plunge Gaza deeper into crisis, stripping millions of Palestinians of life-saving aid as Israel's genocidal war and blockade continue.
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