UN Relief Chief Martin Griffiths: Hamas Is Not A Terrorist Group
UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths stated, “Hamas is not a terrorist group for us, of course, as you know.” It is a movement in politics. When asked if it was reasonable for Israel to insist that Hamas never be a member of a future Palestinian administration, Griffiths made the remarks.
It is extremely, extremely difficult to remove these organizations without a negotiated solution that takes into account their goals, he continued. “Just to clarify: Hamas is not on the list of groups designated as terrorist organizations by the United Nations Security Council,” Griffiths tweeted in response to a question about his remarks. “As I’ve been saying all along, this doesn’t make their acts of terror on October 7th any less horrific and reprehensible,” he continued.
Complexities of the Conflict
Later, in a briefing, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’s spokesperson emphasized that Griffiths and other senior UN representatives had denounced Hamas’s “abhorrent terrorist attack” and stated that “there could be no justification for them.” The spokesperson, Stephane Dujarric, said, “As we’ve said many times here, and the Secretary-General himself not too long ago, the designation of an entity as a terrorist group or terrorist organization can only be made by the Security Council.” “You are going to have to create a relationship based on some shared values if you want to have safety and security with people who are going to inevitably continue to be your neighbor in some form or another,” Griffiths added in the interview. Foreign Minister Israel Katz tweeted in English in reaction to Griffiths’ remarks, saying, “Shame on him.” Katz sent out a harsher tweet in Hebrew, citing remarks made by Guterres and Griffiths and writing, “The United Nations reaches new lows every day.”
Fostering Understanding and Cooperation
Griffiths was also criticized by Gilad Erdan, the Israeli ambassador to the UN, who referred to OCHA as “a terror-excusing, Hamas-promoting, victim-blaming organization.” Erdan wrote on X, “The UN’s pro-Hamas stance is finally exposed on live TV.” “Is the heinous slaughter of hundreds of innocent people not terrorism? Is systemic female rape not terrifying? Is attempting the extermination of Jews not terror? Erdan turned to face Griffiths and wrote, “You are not a ‘humanitarian.'” Regretfully, you assist in acts of terror. In reaction to Griffiths, the US strengthened its identification of Hamas as a terrorist group. “The terrorist group Hamas exists. We have stated as much.
Yes, it is. In response to a query on Griffiths’ remarks made at a press briefing, John Kirby, a spokesman for the White House National Security Council, stated, “It just is.” “To view that in plain terms, all you have to do is consider what they did on October 7th.
Hamas’ Role in Gaza
Since the beginning of the conflict, Israel has repeatedly blasted UN representatives for what it claims is a failure to denounce Hamas. It has also accused some of the organization’s local aid workers in Gaza of working with the terrorist organization; most notably, it has claimed that 12 UNRWA employees were involved in the October 7 massacre. Many nations have frozen UNRWA financing in response to the allegations, calling for a thorough inquiry.
The UNRWA office in Gaza City is situated underneath a Hamas data center, which the IDF showed reporters. Additionally, Griffiths stated in an interview that his organization was in regular contact with Israeli officials on the protection of civilians and that the notion of a mass evacuation of Rafah before an IDF incursion was “illusory.” When Griffiths met with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian in Geneva in November to discuss Gaza’s future, Israeli officials were incensed. The Israeli envoy to Geneva responded by writing, “Iran has no place in Gaza’s future.” It’s not the answer; it’s a component of the issue.
Final Words
In conclusion, Israel was not amused when Griffiths issued a statement calling on “all sides to stop the fighting immediately and protect civilians everywhere and at all times” in the middle of Hamas’s October 7 offensive, seemingly attributing responsibility for the carnage to both sides. It went on, saying that “UNRWA’s institutions serve as fertile ground for committing actions and incitement against the State of Israel.” UNRWA’s role is to deal with Palestinian refugees only, which means that it has no place to provide any services within the territory of the State of Israel. UNRWA provides a forum for spreading misinformation and inciting hatred toward Israel and harming its Jewish citizens. An explanation note to the measure, authored by Likud MK Boaz Bismuth, said that antisemitic content is studied in the schools it operates in Jerusalem and that the textbooks celebrate terrorists who have slaughtered women and children.
