UNRWA Quietly Engaged by Gaza Board of Peace Despite Public Exclusion

The U.S.-created Board of Peace has held multiple meetings with UNRWA officials even as it publicly excludes the U.N. agency for Palestinians from its plans to rebuild Gaza, according to the agency's most recent head and other officials familiar with the discussions.

Philippe Lazzarini, who led UNRWA until March 31, said the Palestinian technocratic committee that will eventually govern Gaza has acknowledged the agency is necessary for planning. A Board of Peace official confirmed that board members had met UNRWA officials several times since the ceasefire, while insisting the agency's days are over. Its programs, the official said, may persist if they serve Gazans well.

Two senior U.N. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed at least three meetings this year between UNRWA and the Palestinian committee, most recently this month. A readout of an April meeting says the committee stated UNRWA could lead efforts to reconstruct refugee camps, noting that this is also a highly political issue. An internal U.N. description of a Jan. 26 meeting in Cairo, held without UNRWA, said committee head Ali Shaath praised the agency and showed a clear intention to see it back on track.

Lazzarini said he spoke shortly before leaving his post to Shaath, who told him, "I don't know how I can succeed without you." Shaath and a spokesperson did not respond to requests for comment. The Tony Blair Institute, a Board of Peace partner, also sought UNRWA's help, one senior U.N. official said.

Israel wants UNRWA out of Gaza and has accused it of being infiltrated by Hamas militants, allegations the International Court of Justice says have not been substantiated. UNRWA remains the territory's largest aid provider, with about 11,000 Palestinian employees in Gaza conducting an average of 14,000 medical appointments daily, maintaining water and waste systems for over a million people, and running education programs for hundreds of thousands of children.

Lazzarini described what he called an absurd contradiction: the Board of Peace says UNRWA is not wanted while U.N. member countries expect it to deliver. He said he was never given written evidence to back up Israel's allegations, but does not regret firing employees accused of taking part in the Oct. 7 attack. His book, "A Witness to Gaza: What Cannot Be Erased," is due to be published in French in October.