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The legal status of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) is under renewed scrutiny following a decision in a US court concerning a lawsuit brought by families of those killed in the October 7th massacre.
The plaintiffs in the suit are seeking unspecified damages and have named UNRWA, alongside seven of its current and former senior officials, as defendants.
The core of the lawsuit alleges that UNRWA had aided Hamas by, among other things, permitting weapons storage and deployment centres in its schools and medical clinics and by employing Hamas members.
UNRWA officials have consistently called the lawsuit 'absurd' and argued in court filings that the agency is protected by immunity as a subsidiary organ of the U.N.
However, the legal position of the US government has now dramatically shifted.
President Joe Biden’s administration had previously argued that the suit should be dismissed because UNRWA was protected by immunity and could not be sued.
In a reversal, President Donald Trump’s administration has now argued that neither the agency nor its officials are entitled to such protection.
This significant policy reversal by the Trump administration will impact the ongoing legal battle and the perception of UNRWA’s role in the region.
Neither UNRWA nor the lawyers representing the plaintiffs immediately responded to requests for comment on the judge’s decision, which was issued on Tuesday.