Report accuses UNESCO of honoring Hamas terrorists as journalists

A new investigation by the Geneva-based NGO UN Watch accuses UNESCO of repeatedly honoring Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorists as journalists—even after the terror groups publicly identified several of them as members of their military wings.

According to the report, UNESCO has refused to correct or withdraw statements memorializing individuals as members of the press despite later admissions by Hamas and Islamic Jihad confirming they were combatants. Among the cases cited is Mohammed Manhal Abu Armana, whom UNESCO described as a journalist before Hamas released footage showing him serving as a platoon commander carrying weapons and leading combat operations. The report also highlights Anas al-Sharif, whom UNESCO identified as an Al Jazeera reporter despite Israeli intelligence identifying him as a Hamas cell commander.

UN Watch has called on UNESCO Director-General Khaled El-Enany to audit all media casualty statements issued since the October 7 massacre, correct inaccurate reports, and investigate the agency’s verification process.

The findings are likely to intensify long-standing criticism of UNESCO from Israel, which has accused the UN body for years of institutional bias over resolutions on Jerusalem, Hebron, and other sites central to Jewish history.