The United States debarred a former United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) official due to his alleged role in the October 7, 2023, terror attacks on Israel.
According to an investigation by the U.S. Agency for International Development Office of the Inspector General (USAID OIG), Hafez Mousa Mohammed Mousa was an “operative of the Hamas East Jabaliya Battalion and coordinated communications with other suspected Hamas members during the October 7 attacks while serving as an UNRWA school principal.”
The investigation led to the “first known debarment by the United States of a terrorist affiliated with a UN agency responsible for humanitarian assistance programming,” USAID OIG explained, noting that the investigation is active and ongoing. Two additional former UNRWA employees have been referred for debarment due to their participation in the October 7 attack, as well as 14 other employees for their affiliation with Hamas.
Ongoing investigations work to prevent the “recirculation of terrorist-affiliated actors across aid organizations operating in Gaza,” the OIG added. It also continues to work toward ensuring accountability for United Nations staff engaged in misconduct in the “performance of U.S.-funded awards.”
Mousa is listed on an Israeli website, where he is described as having used his cellphone to “perform his duties both as an UNRWA school principal and a Hamas militant.” He made five phone calls and sent messages to other operatives and directed them to “infiltrate Israel via the Erez crossing with cars and weapons,” the site details.
Last year, President Trump pulled U.S. funding from UNRWA. The order said the entity has “reportedly been infiltrated by members of groups long designated by the Secretary of State as foreign terrorist organizations, and UNRWA employees were involved in the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel.”
