Israeli groups protest nomination of UNRWA, the UN relief agency with members linked to Hamas and Islamic Jihad who took part in the October 7th invasion, for the Nobel Peace Prize.
By David Rosenberg, World Israel News
A United Nations agency which has been linked to Hamas and other Gaza terrorist organizations is predicted to win the Nobel Peace Prize, drawing protests from Israeli non-governmental organizations.
A total of 286 nominations have been submitted to the Norwegian Nobel Committee, including 197 individuals and 89 organizations. The identities of the nominees are not revealed by the committee for 50 years, though some have been publicly identified by those who sponsored their candidacy.
It is widely predicted that the committee will highlight the ongoing war in Gaza against the Hamas terror organization with its selection, choosing a candidate it perceives as having benefited the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, or worked to end the war altogether.
The front-runner, according to the Norwegian Peace Council, is the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, or UNRWA for short, which was nominated early this year, despite revelations of the agency’s links to terrorist groups including Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, with a number of UNRWA employees accused of taking part in the atrocities of October 7th.
UNRWA’s chief, Philippe Lazzarini could also be included in the prize, which is set to be awarded on Friday.
Two Israeli civil organizations, the Regavim Movement and Im Tirtzu, both condemned the committee’s consideration of UNRWA and urged committee members not to vote for the UN agency.
“The nomination of UNRWA to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize is a perversion of the mission and symbolism of the Prize and would represent an ineradicable stain upon its significance,” Im Tirtzu wrote to the committee in an open letter.
“UNRWA has been an active participant and an ally of Hamas in the massacre Hamas inflicted upon innocent Israeli civilians on October 7, 2023.”
More than 12,000 Israelis signed onto a petition protesting the nomination of UNRWA, the organization added.
“We call on the prize committee not to stain the Prize with the blood found on the hands of UNRWA employees,” said Im Tirtuz CEO Shai Rosengarten.
The Regavim Movement protested UNRWA’s nomination, submitting faux nominations to the Norwegian Nobel Committee for Hamas politburo chief Yahya Sinwar, the Muslim Brotherhood, the Nigerian terrorist group Boko Haram, and internment camps in China used to house members of the Uyghur minority group.
“If UNRWA, with its documented involvement in terrorism, is eligible for a prize meant to honor peace, it’s only fair to consider other organizations with similar records,” said Regavim’s spokesperson.
“We urge the Norwegian Nobel Committee to reassess its candidate selection, and to issue a clear and unequivocal statement condemning the activities of Hamas and repudiating UNRWA’s candidacy for any recognition or accolades – particularly not for a prize celebrating peace and human rights.”
Israel’s Knesset is currently considering legislation, backed by both Opposition and Coalition lawmakers, to bar UNRWA from operating in the country.
Other leading candidates include the International Court of Justice in The Hague over its rulings against Russia in the Ukraine war and against Israel regarding its operation in Rafah, as well as United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
Asle Sveen, a Nobel Prize expert and historian, told Barron’s that the committee could select Guterres as a way of boosting the standing of the United Nations.
“The UN needs all the support and attention the organization can get to survive against the forces which in reality claim might is right,” Sveen said.
“A Peace Prize to Antonio Guterres will give him a unique opportunity to… warn against the dangers of making the UN and the world order irrelevant.”