The chief oversight body responsible for tracking U.S. foreign assistance says United Nations agencies are stonewalling a probe into their ties to Hamas. The agencies have failed to provide investigators with information that could identify their employees as affiliates of the terror group, according to a non-public report transmitted to Congress and obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.
The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) inspector general’s office, an investigative entity separate from USAID, sent letters to six separate U.N. agencies in December 2025 asking them to name all employees “who worked on U.S.-government funded awards” and provide their contact information and “date and place of birth.” The office also asked the agencies to detail their “interactions with Hamas,” among other requests.
“OIG has consistently raised concerns about UN cooperation, transparency, and willingness to provide information to investigators who request UN records pertinent to U.S.-funded awards,” it continues.
AFSI’s take:
That U.N. agencies working in Gaza remain vulnerable to Hamas infiltration points to a long-standing structural dilemma, i.e., Hamas’ rule in Gaza, rather than a simple failure of oversight. Ultimately, the tension between humanitarian access and security control is inherent in areas like Gaza. Addressing it requires constant adjustment, external scrutiny, and political will—not just from the U.N., with its consistent anti-Israel bias, but from all stakeholders involved.