UN’s Guterres meets with Qatar PM to discuss UNRWA funding, humanitarian pause, hostage deal

The United Nations chief discussed efforts to end Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza, release the hostages and ensure support for humanitarian operations with Qatar’s prime minister, the UN spokesman says.

The meeting between Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani took place as the US, Qatar, Egypt and others are negotiating a possible new humanitarian pause and hostage release – and as 16 countries have suspended funding for the UN agency for Palestinian refugees known as UNRWA over allegations a dozen of its staff participated in Hamas’ Oct. 7 onslaught in southern Israel.

UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric responded when asked whether the Qatari prime minister offered any new funding for UNRWA: “I think the issue of humanitarian funding was discussed in a very positive atmosphere and I will leave it at that.”

A dossier purportedly disseminated by Israel alleges that 12 employees of the UN agency took part in the deadly assault in which terrorists murdered close to 1,200 Israelis and took another 253 captive in Gaza. The allegations claim that one of the 12 men implicated was an UNRWA teacher accused of being armed with an anti-tank missile, while another teacher had been accused of filming a hostage being taken captive on October 7.

Another of the staffers, also an elementary school teacher, allegedly served as a Hamas commander and participated in the massacre in Kibbutz Be’eri, while a man employed by UNRWA as a social worker was allegedly involved in the kidnapping of an IDF soldier’s body on that day.

Of the 12 UNRWA workers accused of participating in the October 7 massacre, seven were reportedly teachers, two were educational consultants and others were humanitarian aid warehouse managers.