AIPAC Memo

Anti-Israel Action at the U.N. Since October 7

February 15, 2024

Hamas complex under UNRWA headquarters in Gaza — Hamas’ complex located underneath UNRWA’s headquarters in Gaza (Source: Emanuel Fabian/Times of Israel, Gaza City, February 8, 2024).

The United Nations has long had a glaring anti-Israel bias, advancing biased and one-sided efforts to isolate and delegitimize the Jewish state. This anti-Israel prejudice has escalated dramatically since Hamas’ October 7 attack.

Across U.N. agencies, officials have failed to uphold the body’s charter of neutrality and impartiality. They have repeatedly neglected to condemn Hamas’ October 7 massacre and in some cases have even justified the gruesome attacks. Most alarmingly, U.N. staff directly participated in the Hamas’ terrorist attacks.

The United States must continue to combat the U.N.’s deep-seated anti-Israel bias, halt funding to U.N. agencies that discriminate against Israel, and push for fundamental change at the organization.

UNRWA — the U.N. agency dedicated solely to the Palestinians — supports and incites terror against Israelis. At least 12 UNRWA staffers were directly involved in Hamas’ October 7 attack, including murdering and kidnapping Israelis, and roughly 10 percent of UNRWA employees in Gaza have direct ties to Hamas. UNRWA employees also publicly glorified Hamas’ attacks and encouraged further executions of Israelis. UNRWA’s headquarters in Gaza was located above a half-mile-long tunnel network containing a Hamas intelligence and communications hub, drawing power from the U.N. facility. For more, read this AIPAC memo on UNRWA.
U.N. Women failed to condemn the war crimes against Israeli women – until shamed into doing so. Under the leadership of Executive Director Sima Bahous, the former Jordanian Ambassador to the U.N., this U.N. body dedicated to championing women’s rights was completely silent on Hamas’ well-documented mass murder, rape, and torture of Israeli women and girls for two months after October 7.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres singles out Israel for condemnation. Guterres invoked Article 99 of the U.N. Charter, which allows the secretary-general to bring any matter to the security council’s attention that he believes threatens international peace and security. In over three decades, the U.N. has only invoked this article to pressure Israel. Guterres also sought to justify Hamas’ attack, saying, “It is important to also recognize the attacks by Hamas did not happen in a vacuum. The Palestinian people have been subjected to 56 years of suffocating occupation.”
U.N. resolutions repeatedly fail to condemn Hamas. The U.N. General Assembly overwhelmingly passed resolutions on October 27 and December 13 calling for an immediate ceasefire that would leave Hamas armed and in power. The U.S. vetoed two Security Council resolutions that also called for an immediate ceasefire with Hamas. None of these resolutions condemned Hamas’ October 7 attacks, mentioned the terror group by name, or affirmed Israel’s right to self-defense.

“The victims of [October 7] were not killed because of their Judaism, but in response to Israel’s oppression.”

- U.N. Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese

The International Court of Justice indulges what the U.S. called “meritless, counterproductive” genocide charges against Israel. By agreeing to hear South Africa’s “genocide” case rather than dismissing it outright, the ICJ is giving legitimacy to South Africa’s outrageous, libelous and dangerous allegations.
Anti-Israel organizations are investigating the charges against UNRWA staff. At least two of the three organizations tasked with “investigating” UNRWA for employing terrorists have made anti-Israel statements or defended UNRWA. Leading the investigation is former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colona, who recently praised UNRWA’s work as “more useful than ever.”
U.N. officials justify Hamas’ October 7 attack and refuse to denounce terrorism. In response to French President Emanuel Macron’s statement that October 7 was the “biggest antisemitic massacre of our century,” U.N. Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese justified Hamas’ attack by saying that “the victims of [October 7] were not killed because of their Judaism, but in response to Israel’s oppression.” U.N. Relief Chief Martin Griffiths said in a recent interview that, “Hamas is not a terrorist group for us, as you know, it is a political movement.”

“Hamas is not a terrorist group for us, as you know, it is a political movement.”

- U.N. Relief Chief Martin Griffiths

THE WAY FORWARD

The U.S. must continue to fight anti-Israel bias at the United Nations.

America must institute a plan that ends American funding for UNRWA and urge our allies to do the same. Humanitarian aid to the Palestinians must be delivered through an alternative mechanism that promotes peaceful coexistence with Israel, rather than terrorism.

The U.S. must continue to support Israel at the U.N. Security Council, veto one-sided resolutions targeting Israel, and seek to remove antisemitic and anti-Israel U.N. officials. The U.S. must also continue to defend Israel at the International Court of Justice and reject South Africa’s baseless and slanderous claims against Israel.

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