Rubio rejects UNRWA role in Gaza aid distribution amid Israel-Hamas ceasefire

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who arrived in Israel shortly after Vice President JD Vance left for Washington, railed against the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) amid the U.S.-brokered ceasefire.

“UNRWA’s not going to play any role in it,” Rubio said when asked about whether the controversial agency would assist in delivering humanitarian aid to Gaza. “The United Nations is here. They’re on the ground. We’re willing to work with them if they can make it work, but not UNRWA. UNRWA became a subsidiary of Hamas.”

UNRWA demanded in a post on X that it be allowed to do work in Gaza.

“As the largest U.N. agency operating in the Gaza Strip, by far, UNRWA has an unparalleled logistical network, longstanding trust from the community, managing the distribution of supplies based on vulnerability and clear criteria. Our teams are ready, inside and outside Gaza. Let us work,” the agency wrote.

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On Oct. 17, days after world leaders backed a U.S.-brokered ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) opened a Civil-Military Coordination Center (CMCC), which is where Rubio spoke on Friday.

The CMCC is located in southern Israel and will serve as the main hub for Gaza stabilization efforts. It will also oversee implementation of the ceasefire agreement and has an operations floor designed to track real-time developments in Gaza.

During the U.N. General Assembly (UNGA) last month, U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres spoke at a meeting in support of UNRWA, saying that the agency has “made invaluable contributions to development, human rights, humanitarian action, and peace and security, including for Israel.”

“UNRWA is vital to any prospects for peace and stability in the region,” Guterres added.

UNRWA’s headquarters in Gaza City, Gaza, on Feb. 21, 2024.  (Dawoud Abo Alkas/Anadolu via Getty Images)

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However, the U.S. and Israel have taken hard stances against the agency, particularly in the wake of the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre.

President Donald Trump in February reaffirmed the U.S.’s commitment to not fund UNRWA. 

In the executive order, Trump said that “UNRWA has reportedly been infiltrated by members of groups long designated by the Secretary of State as foreign terrorist organizations, and UNRWA employees were involved in the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel.”

A Palestinian boy walks near an UNRWA school sheltering displaced people that was hit in an overnight Israeli strike in Gaza City on July 5, 2025. (Dawoud Abu Alkas/Reuters)

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In April 2025, when the International Court of Justice (ICJ) demanded Israel work with UNRWA, Washington backed Jerusalem, saying it was under no obligation to work with the agency and had “ample grounds to question UNRWA’s impartiality.”

UNRWA announced in August 2024 the end of an investigation by the Office of Internal Oversight Services into whether its staff participated in the attacks, as Israel claimed. Following the probe, which looked into 19 UNRWA staff members, nine staff members were fired over evidence that “could indicate” they were involved in the attacks.

The investigation found one case in which there was no evidence to confirm the staffer’s involvement and nine other cases in which “the evidence obtained by OIOS was insufficient” to prove their participation, according to UNRWA.

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Digital reached out to UNRWA and Israel’s mission to the U.N. for comment.

Digital’s Alexandra Koch contributed to this report.