Incompetence, Collusion & Disingenuousness At The UN

May 17, 2024

The ongoing and nearly century-long conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, more recently with the terrorist group Hamas, has been filled with controversy, with both sides accusing each other of war crimes and human rights violations. In the midst of this chaos, the United Nations (UN) has positioned itself as a provider of humanitarian aid and a facilitator of order. However, the UN’s handling of the situation has come under scrutiny, particularly regarding its use of inflated casualty figures and its relationship with Hamas.

As the UN considers granting membership to the non-nation-state of Palestine, it is crucial to analyze the casualty figures in Gaza, the UN’s role in the conflict, and the potential misuse of its resources by Hamas.

Additionally, we need to consider the implications of the UN General Assembly’s decision to upgrade the status of the Palestinian territories to that of an observer state and its impact on the ongoing conflict.

Revised Casualty Figures in Gaza

On April 22, the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported that the war had led to 34,151 fatalities, including 14,500 children and 9,500 women, citing the Hamas-run Government Media Office (GMO) as the source. However, in an update on May 8, OCHA disclosed that the death toll had risen to 34,844, with 24,686 identified as of April 30. Among those identified were 7,797 children and 4,959 women, which is about half the previous number reported for women and children.

David Adesnik, director of research at the Washington-based Foundation for Defense of Democracies, stated that the UN may have "recognized the lack of evidence" behind Hamas's original claims on the casualty figures in Gaza. To support this idea, Hillel Neuer, executive director of UN Watch, mentioned in a social media post that “there is no method or standard of proof” for the casualty counting by the Hamas-instituted GMO in Gaza.

“The truth is that when it comes to Israel, it’s clear the UN’s goal is not accuracy, but rather to immediately seize on any report, no matter how unsubstantiated or even manifestly false, in order to portray Israel as malevolent,” Neuer wrote.

Farhan Haq, deputy spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres, told reporters on May 10 that the agency would typically adjust the figures "many times over the course of a conflict." This rightly raises serious questions about the credibility of not only the initial figures provided by the UN and the reliability of the sources they cite, but also the reliability of any numbers coming out of the UN on any topic.

The Washington Institute for Near East Policy released a report in January stating that the figures provided by the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry since November 1, 2023, lack credibility. This is because they were derived from news stories rather than hospital and morgue data. The report casts doubt on the accuracy of the casualty figures and highlights the need for a more transparent and truthful system for recording and reporting fatalities in conflict zones.

The UN's Unholy Relationship with Hamas

The UN has been criticized for working with Hamas, a designated terrorist organization by several countries, including the United States and Israel. This issue came to light when the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) released drone footage showing Hamas terrorists using UN-marked vehicles, which are protected in a combat zone. The footage also shows Hamas gunmen apparently shooting at unarmed civilians in and around the UNRWA humanitarian aid depot in Rafah.

The Israeli military revealed in a press statement that the footage depicts "a group of terrorists and gunfire near UN vehicles and in the vicinity of UNRWA's logistics warehouse compound in eastern Rafah." The IDF has called on the UN to investigate the collaboration between its agency and Hamas terrorists.

In February, Israeli soldiers discovered an underground Hamas command center located directly beneath the UNRWA's Gaza headquarters. Additionally, Israeli intelligence indicates that hundreds of UNRWA employees in Gaza are members of Hamas and other Palestinian terrorist groups and were involved in the October 7 massacre.

IDF Spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari stated, "We have shared our findings with senior members of the international community and have urged the UN to promptly investigate the link between UNRWA's logistics centers and Hamas operatives using their vehicles." The IDF's released footage also depicts Hamas terrorists using UN vehicles, exploiting the international agency's diplomatic status for their terrorist activities.

The UN General Assembly's Vote
on Palestinian Observer State Status

Despite the overwhelming proof that Hamas is violating international law by using the UN as a front for terrorist operations, despite the fact that the overwhelming majority of Palestinians support not only Hamas as their government but the actions of Hamas on October 7th, and despite the fact no other Arab/Muslim country in the Middle East with provide the Palestinians with safe haven, the UN General Assembly voted to upgrade the Palestinian territories’ status to an observer state without offering full membership.

The resolution to upgrade the Palestinian territories’ status was adopted with 143 votes in favor, 9 against, and 25 abstentions. The upgraded status grants the Palestinians additional privileges, such as a seat among UN members in the assembly hall and the ability to submit and co-sponsor proposals and amendments.

US Alternative Representative for Special Political Affairs to the UN, Robert Wood, stated that the US view is that direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority are the most expeditious path toward statehood and UN membership for the Palestinian people. This mindset is held in defiance of Hamas’ refusal to accept a two-state solution per its original 1988 charter and its “kinder gentler” charter, revised in 2017.

In its original charter Hamas states:

Jihad is its path and death for the sake of Allah is the loftiest of its wishes (Article 8)
Nationalism, from the point of view of the Islamic Resistance Movement, is part of the religious creed. Nothing in nationalism is more significant or deeper than in the case when an enemy should tread Moslem land. Resisting and quelling the enemy become the individual duty of every Muslim, male or female (Article 12)
The day that enemies usurp part of Muslim land, Jihad becomes the individual duty of every Muslim. In face of the Jews' usurpation of Palestine, it is compulsory that the banner of Jihad be raised (Article 15)

In the revised charter of 2017, the second principle states:

“Palestine, which extends from the River Jordan in the east to the Mediterranean in the west and from Ras Al-Naqurah in the north to Umm Al-Rashrash in the south, is an integral territorial unit. It is the land and the home of the Palestinian people. The expulsion and banishment of the Palestinian people from their land and the establishment of the Zionist entity therein do not annul the right of the Palestinian people to their entire land and do not entrench any rights therein for the usurping Zionist entity.”

Principle 10 states:

“Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine. Its religious, historic and civilizational status is fundamental to the Arabs, Muslims and the world at large. Its Islamic and Christian holy places belong exclusively to the Palestinian people and to the Arab and Islamic Ummah. Not one stone of Jerusalem can be surrendered or relinquished. The measures undertaken by the occupiers in Jerusalem, such as Judaization, settlement building, and establishing facts on the ground are fundamentally null and void.”

And the 18th principle in the Hamas charter states:

“The following are considered null and void: the Balfour Declaration, the British Mandate Document, the UN Palestine Partition Resolution, and whatever resolutions and measures that derive from them or are similar to them. The establishment of “Israel” is entirely illegal and contravenes the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people and goes against their will and the will of the Ummah; it is also in violation of human rights that are guaranteed by international conventions, foremost among them is the right to self-determination.”

It is difficult, if not impossible, to see Hamas as an honest partner in establishing a two-state solution. With the Palestinian people's overwhelming support for Hamas, it is hard to envision a peaceful "State of Palestine" ever coming to fruition.

However, the far left in the United States and the globalist community continue to disregard the desires of those who identify as "Palestinian" by insisting on a two-state solution, which is destined to fail.

Legitimacy Must Be Earned, Not Bestowed

The ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas was brutally and savagely initiated by the bloodthirsty terror group Hamas. The UN’s handling of casualty figures and its relationship with Hamas must be scrutinized because that relationship – that proven relationship – casts doubt on the credibility of the agency’s reporting and raises concerns about the intentional misuse of its resources by the terrorist organization.

The UN General Assembly’s decision to upgrade the so-called Palestinian territories’ status to an observer state will provide additional privileges to the “Palestinian people” – a people who overwhelmingly support Hamas – while doing nothing to resolve the ongoing conflict. The most effective path toward lasting peace and stability in the region includes the eradication of the terrorist group Hamas – and any other violently sycophantic terror organization. Then, and only then, can direct negotiations between Israel and a legitimate and sincere representative body to the “Palestinian” people commence in earnest.

As the conflict rages on, it is crucial for the UN and the international community to demand and ensure transparency, accuracy, and impartiality in their reporting and handling of the situation in Gaza. This includes investigating allegations of collusion between UN agencies and Hamas terrorists and establishing reliable and credible methods for recording and reporting casualties in conflict zones.

Only through a concerted effort to uphold the principles of truth, justice, freedom, and human rights can the international community hope to bring an end to the suffering and devastation in Gaza and safety and security to the Israeli people.