‘Miracle That She Survived’: British Israeli Hostage Tells UK Prime Minister She Was Held at UNRWA Facilities

Latest Developments

Refused Medical Care for Gunshot Wounds: Emily Damari, the 28-year-old British-Israeli hostage who was recently released after 15 months of captivity by Hamas, told British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer that she had been held at facilities operated by the UNRWA, the UN agency for the descendants of Palestinian refugees. During the February 1 phone call, Damari also told Starmer that despite being shot in the hand and leg and losing two of her fingers, she was refused medical treatment besides a bottle of expired iodine. “It’s a miracle that she survived, and we need to get aid to the remaining hostages now,” her mother, Mandy Damari, said.
UNRWA Chief Claims Ignorance: Another three female soldiers released earlier this month shared similar accounts of being held at an UNRWA-operated refugee camp. UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini, who throughout the war claimed Israel’s criticisms were baseless and constituted a “relentless assault” on his organization, said on X that he found Demari’s and other hostages’ claims to be “deeply disturbing and shocking” and called for an investigation. Lazzarini admitted that “UNRWA was forced to vacate all its installations in the north of Gaza Strip, including Gaza City,” six days after the Hamas massacre in Israel on October 7, 2023, and has “since then, had no control over them.”
Terrorists Work for UNRWA: In January 2024, Israel revealed that at least 13 UNRWA employees took part in Hamas’s October 7 assault on Israel, later disclosing that at least 12 percent of UNRWA employees are affiliated with Hamas or Palestinian Islamic Jihad. An investigation spearheaded by Lazzarini confirmed in August that at least nine employees participated in the massacre but claimed there was not enough information about nine others. The Israeli government has officially banned the organization from operating on and from Israeli territory.

FDD Expert Response

“The United Nations has an opportunity to provide much-needed humanitarian aid to Palestinians through a myriad of other mechanisms that, unlike UNRWA, are not tethered to Hamas. Under its current leadership and former head, Pierre Krahenbuhl, who now heads up the International Committee on the Red Cross (which, for nearly 500 days has not visited a single hostage), UNRWA has failed to ensure its facilities are not used by Hamas for its malign activities and that its schools do not teach Hamas’s brand of hate and violence. Gazans now have an opportunity to envision for themselves a new path forward, unchained to Hamas. We ought to support those who are determined to help Palestinians chart a new, Hamas-free course.” — Toby Dershowitz, Managing Director of FDD Action

“It will be an important data point to establish whether any of the American hostages were held at UNRWA facilities. If the Department of Justice concludes that UNRWA has become an independent agency of the United Nations and is thus not protected by any immunities treaty, the potential for U.S. criminal indictments targeting UNRWA, its senior officials, and its Gaza personnel should be on the table.” — Richard Goldberg, Senior Advisor

“Palestinian terrorist groups in Gaza have a well-documented history of exploiting UNRWA facilities. Compounding this issue is the failure of UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini to take responsibility for the organization’s inability to prevent its facilities from being used for terrorist activities. This lack of accountability has eroded trust in UNRWA and raised serious concerns about its effectiveness. Given these circumstances, Israel, the United States, and their partners are justified in considering alternatives to the organization.” — Joe Truzman, Senior Research Analyst and Editor at FDD’s Long War Journal