Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon stated that Israel would take action in response to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs’ (OCHA) false accusations against Israel and its breach of neutrality in favor of the Hamas terrorist organization to ensure that this situation does not continue.
During a Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East, Amb. Danon described ties between senior officials in the organization and Hamas: “Israel is revealing a disturbing truth today: OCHA has long ceased to be a humanitarian body. It is a Hamas propaganda arm that operates from within UN institutions, and uses false data and inflammatory discourse to harm Israel.”
During the session, Ambassador Danon announced that Israel would take a series of immediate steps following the revelations, including: Hundreds of the agency’s employees will undergo security screening and the residence permits of senior employees will not be renewed: “The head of the OCHA branch in Judea and Samaria, Jonathan Whittall, will be required to leave Israel by the end of the month. We will no longer allow anti-Israel activity under the guise of humanitarianism.”
Ambassador Danon concluded: “Israel will continue to protect its citizens and stand against mechanisms that promote lies, incitement and terrorism, even if they bear the UN logo.”
Before the Security Council meeting, Danon outlined OCHA’s problematic behavior in a press briefing. “Today in the [Security] Council, many will again raise the humanitarian situation in Gaza. We will remind them all of the fact that Israel is facilitating the entry of aid through two mechanisms, the Gaza Humanitarian Fund, and the entry of aid trucks,” he said.
“While Israel and other actors deliver, the UN has faltered. As of now, approximately 950 trucks are awaiting collection on the Gazan side,” he accused. “The UN’s hypocrisy is even more evident in the conduct of OCHA. Several weeks ago, Tom Fletcher, OCHA’s head, claimed that 14,000 babies in Gaza would starve to death within 48 hours. This was a blood libel. He quietly walked it back, but only after the lie had already circled the globe. He has yet to retract his further disgusting accusation that Israel is committing a genocide.”
He noted: “The problem with OCHA goes far beyond one official’s statement. The entire agency has abandoned neutrality. On May 6, OCHA published grossly inflated casualty figures in Gaza. Two days later, those numbers were quietly reduced by more than 10,000. There was no explanation and no accountability. OCHA relies almost exclusively on Hamas-run sources. There is no independent verification, no distinction between civilians and terrorists. When it comes to Israel, the UN’s standards disappear.”
“At the same time, OCHA ignores the over 13,000 aid trucks that Israel and other partners have facilitated into Gaza, counting only UN-coordinated aid. Israel will not allow this to continue,” he declared. “I will therefore inform today, in the council, of steps Israel is taking to ensure that what has been happening with OCHA will no longer continue.”
“Israel is taking action. We are fighting to bring the hostages back, to defend our civilians, and to dismantle terror networks. It is time the UN did the same,” Danon concluded.