Navigating Aid Diversion and UN Accountability in Gaza

In the midst of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire, a significant investigation continues to unfold regarding the potential misuse of U.S. taxpayer funds in Gaza. The USAID Office of the Inspector General (USAID OIG) has been actively investigating allegations that American humanitarian aid may have been diverted to foreign terrorist organizations, particularly Hamas. According to a U.S. diplomatic official familiar with these investigations, USAID OIG continues to receive reports from aid workers and whistleblowers on the ground that directly challenge the narrative that Hamas was not involved in the theft of American-funded aid. These whistleblowers appear increasingly frustrated with what they perceive as the United Nations’ unwillingness to acknowledge Hamas’s role in aid diversion. The investigation began in November 2023, when USAID OIG first warned about the possible redirection of American aid to terrorist groups, and by July 2024, they confirmed they were investigating “credible allegations of Hamas interference, diversion, and theft of humanitarian aid in Gaza.”

The United Nations’ role in this situation has become increasingly controversial. While the UN has admitted that most aid sent into Gaza after May 2025 was diverted by “armed actors and hungry Gazans,” the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs has specifically denied Hamas’s responsibility for widespread aid diversion. This contradiction has raised serious concerns, especially after Reuters reported in July that a USAID analysis found little evidence of Hamas theft of Gaza aid—a claim quickly disputed by both the State Department and the White House. The diplomatic source interviewed expressed personal frustration with UN duplicity, noting that the same UN officials who participated in productive coordination meetings about aid deliveries would then publicly criticize Israel the very next day. Adding to these concerns, USAID OIG reported that since October 2023, it had received 17 reports of alleged misconduct from USAID-funded implementers, but only two of these were submitted by UN organizations, despite over half of USAID programming being obligated to UN entities.

A central focus of the USAID OIG investigation has been Hamas’s alleged infiltration of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA). An investigation concluded in April 2025 found that three UNRWA members were connected with the October 7 attack on Israel, and another 14 were affiliates of Hamas. Despite UNRWA previously reporting that it had fired nine employees for their association with the attacks, the USAID OIG reported in July that it was “unable to obtain from UNRWA” the names of the personnel it fired. This lack of transparency prompted USAID OIG investigators to open an independent investigation, reportedly obtaining information “through other sources and methods” that UNRWA had refused to provide. Their stated goal was to ensure that UNRWA officials associated with Hamas would not be recirculated to other U.S. taxpayer-funded organizations operating in Gaza.

The investigation has now reached the halls of Congress, where House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman James Comer has launched his own inquiry into UNRWA staff participation in the October 7 attacks. In an October 27 letter to UN Secretary-General António Guterres, Comer requested unredacted copies of a UN Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) report into UNRWA participation in the attack, along with correspondence and other details about staff who were investigated. Comer emphasized the significant U.S. financial contribution to the UN—22% of its general budget, 40% of its humanitarian budget, and 25% of its peacekeeping budget, plus hundreds of millions to UNRWA specifically in recent years. While the UN spokesperson indicated they are “considering the committee’s request,” William Deere of UNRWA’s Washington office insisted that “the United Nations provided the USAID IG with an unredacted copy of the U.N. Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) investigation report months ago,” calling suggestions of withheld information “disingenuous.”

UNRWA’s defense has been met with significant skepticism from U.S. officials familiar with the investigation. The diplomatic source quoted in the article directly contradicted UNRWA’s assertion that Hamas members are no longer on its payroll, stating bluntly that “UNRWA continues to employ Hamas members, there is no question. They are a subsidiary of Hamas.” A report by the Washington Free Beacon claimed that a confidential copy of the OIOS report showed that investigators dismissed Israeli intelligence evidence as “likely authentic” but “insufficient” to support firing additional UNRWA employees. Furthermore, the report allegedly indicated that the UN “did not investigate ties to Hamas outside participation in the October 7 attacks,” suggesting a potentially limited scope to the investigation that might have missed broader Hamas infiltration of the organization.

The implications of these investigations extend far beyond immediate aid concerns. Foundation for Defense of Democracies Senior Advisor Richard Goldberg offered a stark assessment, stating that “UNRWA was Hamas in Gaza” and remains “a terror and radicalization threat elsewhere.” Goldberg argued that UNRWA proved “neither indispensable nor irreplaceable” when Israel banned it in Gaza, as other UN agencies and NGOs quickly replaced its functions. He advocated for dismantling the entire agency “in the context of deradicalization,” warning that “October 7 will keep happening again and again so long as UNRWA exists.” This sentiment appears to be gaining traction within the U.S. government, as a State Department spokesperson told Fox News Digital that “UNRWA was complicit in October 7 and is unfit for purpose. Our policy is that it will not play a role in Gaza again.” Meanwhile, USAID OIG confirmed that its “investigations of UNRWA officials affiliated with Hamas are active and ongoing, and intended to prevent the recirculation of terrorists to other U.S.-funded organizations operating in Gaza.”