Israel accused a UN agency of assisting Hamas’s October 7 attack on the same day that the UN’s top court demanded Israel do more to protect civilian lives

On Friday, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the UN’s top court, ruled that Israel must do more to protect civilian lives in Gaza

In its first ruling on a genocide case brought by South Africa against Israel, the court said it is “deeply concerned about the continuing loss of life and human suffering” in Gaza

Its ruling was widely seen as a condemnation against Israel, although it stopped short of demanding a full ceasefire, as South Africa had requested

The ICJ’s rulings are legally binding, but Israeli leaders strongly denounced the ruling and it’s unclear if they will comply. The ICJ told Israel to submit a report within a month that lists steps it has taken to protect civilians

Also on Friday, Israel and the UN claimed that 12 members of a UN agency had assisted Hamas’s October 7th attack

The employees allegedly worked for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), an agency tasked with providing aid, shelter, and schooling to millions of Palestiniana

Since October 7, the UNRWA has served as the primary aid organization on the ground in Gaza, distributing humanitarian aid and providing other services

It currently operates shelters housing 1.2M Gazans who have been displaced due to the war

On Friday, citing unspecified intelligence reports, Israel accused several UNRWA employees of having provided assistance to Hamas on October 7

Israel didn’t specify the nature of the alleged assistance, but an advisor to Israel’s prime minister told the BBC that a hostage was “held in the house of someone who worked for UNRWA”

The UN acknowledged the allegations and fired the accused employees

It also launched an investigation and said it will prosecute any staff “involved in acts of terror”

In response to the allegations, the US, Germany, the UK, and at least four other countries announced they will stop funding the UNRWA

Those decisions will deprive the agency of tens or hundreds of millions of dollars, prompting the UN’s secretary-general to warn that the agency could run out of money by February

The head of the UNRWA called those countries’ decisions “collective punishment,” adding, “It is shocking to see a suspension of funds…[over] allegations against a small group of staff”

Other countries that fund UNRWA have not suspended their aid, citing its humanitarian work

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