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Toronto (January 29, 2024) – Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center (FSWC) commends the Canadian government for pausing all additional funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) following revelations that some of its employees allegedly took part in Hamas’s Oct. 7 atrocities in southern Israel.

A reported 15 countries, including Canada, have suspended funds to UNRWA pending an investigation into new allegations against at least a dozen UNRWA workers.

FSWC President and CEO Michael Levitt issued the following statement:

“While the suspension of funds to UNRWA is an important action at this time, it’s long overdue given the agency’s long history of supporting anti-Israel and antisemitic incitement, especially in its schools. FSWC and many other Jewish groups have repeatedly called on the Canadian government to freeze payments to UNRWA and hold it to account following numerous reports revealing its educators, staff, school textbooks and classroom materials have promoted antisemitism and violence – and UNRWA’s repeated denials and abject failure to deal with the revelations. The latest allegations made against UNRWA employees are extremely grave and are yet another reminder of how deep-rooted anti-Israel sentiment is at the organization.”

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