# Trump escalates pressure on UN agency over Hamas ties

> A watchdog report challenges UNRWA's claims of reform while Trump amplifies allegations of employee ties to Hamas.
- Title: Trump escalates pressure on UN agency over Hamas ties
- Summary: A watchdog report challenges UNRWA's claims of reform while Trump amplifies allegations of employee ties to Hamas. UNRWA says it has completed most reforms…
- Keywords: unrwa, hamas, un agency, trump administration, un watch, staff vetting, reform claims, gaza, catherine colonna, employee screening, news, politics
- Source: Fox News — https://foxnews.com/world/trump-brings-new-heat-controversial-un-agency-alleged-hamas-ties-engulf-scores-employees
- Author: Efrat Lachter
- Published: 2026-09-16T00:00:00+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: unrwa, hamas, un agency, trump administration, un watch, staff vetting, reform claims, gaza, catherine colonna, employee screening, news, politics
## Trump amplifies Hamas allegations
President Trump shared a report on Truth Social about a U.S. government investigation that referred over 100 current or former UNRWA employees for alleged ties to Hamas.
## Watchdog challenges reform claims
UN Watch released a report saying UNRWA completed only 13 of 50 recommended reforms, not the 41 the agency claims. The group says UNRWA counted drafting policies and pilot programs as finished reforms without full implementation.

> UNRWA is grading its own homework, and giving itself credit for reforms that exist mainly on paper.
## Staff vetting remains incomplete
UNRWA lists a vetting pilot program as completed, but UN Watch argues that a pilot and implementation plan do not equal a fully operational outside vetting system.
## Education reforms questioned
UNRWA claims systematic textbook reviews and classroom inspections are done, but a policy banning problematic content remains in progress. Former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna found content glorifying jihad and maps omitting Israel.
## UN defends its verification process
UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric said UNRWA regularly reports to the General Assembly and holds integrity meetings open to member states. He added that UNRWA shares staff lists with Israeli, Jordanian, Lebanese and Syrian authorities.

> It is not just checking boxes for the sake of checking boxes. It's about the implementation of those things.
## Watchdog rejects terminology defense
UN Watch Executive Director Hillel Neuer said this is not a semantic disagreement. Teachers tied to terrorist organizations remain in classrooms, Hamas-dominated unions block discipline, and children are exposed to incitement.

> Those are real-world consequences, not technicalities.
## Colonna review sparked reforms
UN Secretary-General António Guterres commissioned the independent review in February 2024 after allegations that UNRWA employees participated in the October 7 attacks. Guterres accepted all 50 recommendations in April 2024.
## Key takeaway

UNRWA says it has completed most reforms, but independent monitors say the agency is counting incomplete measures as finished work.