UNRWA and Palestinian Refugees
Accusation: Israel is accused of attacking UNRWA, the UN agency that cares for Palestinian refugees, and of denying refugees their right of return.
The Short Answer
UNRWA is the only UN agency created for a single group of refugees, and the only one that passes refugee status down through generations. That turned about 700,000 refugees from 1948 into nearly six million registered today.
UN investigators found that some of its staff may have taken part in October 7. A mass return of millions would end Israel as a Jewish state.
What Is UNRWA?
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency was created in 1949 to help Arabs displaced in the 1948 war. Every other refugee in the world is cared for by a different agency, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees.
There is a crucial difference. The UN refugee agency works to resettle refugees so they can build new lives. UNRWA keeps Palestinians registered as refugees, generation after generation, even when they hold citizenship in another country.
Six Million Refugees From 700,000
Because refugee status passes to children, grandchildren and great grandchildren, the roughly 700,000 people displaced in 1948 have become nearly six million registered refugees. Most of them have never lived in Israel.
Arab countries kept many of them stateless on purpose, often in camps, so that the refugee issue would remain a weapon against Israel. Jordan was the main exception, granting citizenship to most of them.
UNRWA and Hamas
In January 2024 Israel presented evidence that UNRWA employees took part in the October 7 attack. A UN investigation later found that nine staff members may have been involved, and they were fired.
In February 2024 Israeli forces uncovered a Hamas tunnel and data center running beneath UNRWA's headquarters in Gaza City. Studies of UNRWA school materials have also found content glorifying terrorists and rejecting Israel's existence.
In October 2024 the Knesset passed laws banning UNRWA from operating in Israeli territory and ending official contact with it. The laws took effect in January 2025, and aid continues to reach Gaza through other organizations. Read more: Gaza Famine and Humanitarian Aid
The Right of Return
Palestinian leaders demand that all six million descendants be allowed to move into Israel. That would turn Israel into another Arab majority state and end the only Jewish state in the world.
UN General Assembly Resolution 194, often quoted, is not binding. It speaks of refugees wishing to live at peace with their neighbors. Meanwhile, about 850,000 Jews forced out of Arab countries were never given a UN agency or a right of return. Israel absorbed them.
Key Facts About UNRWA
UNRWA is the only UN agency devoted to one group of refugees.
It passes refugee status to descendants, unlike the UN refugee agency.
A UN investigation found nine staff members may have taken part in October 7.
Hamas built a tunnel and data center under UNRWA's Gaza headquarters.
Israel's ban on UNRWA activity in its territory took effect in January 2025.
How to Respond
Ask why Palestinians are the only refugees whose status is inherited forever.
Ask why Arab states kept refugees in camps for decades instead of granting them citizenship.
Mention the Jewish refugees from Arab lands who rebuilt their lives without a UN agency.
Point out that aid to Palestinians can be delivered by agencies not tied to Hamas.
Conclusion
UNRWA has kept the refugee problem alive for more than seventy years instead of solving it. Real help for Palestinians means resettlement and dignity, not a demand designed to erase Israel.