Written by Jerry Elman, October 17, 2024
The United Nations was meant to be a beacon of hope. It was built from the ashes of war, an institution designed to prevent horrors like genocide and global conflict. But when I look at its actions today—particularly in its dealings with Israel—I can’t help but wonder: has the UN, in some ways, become a terrorist organization itself, actively working against Israel’s survival?
This question isn’t merely provocative. The pattern of behavior, the complicity, the aid siphoned to terror groups, and the absolute lack of accountability beg us to reconsider what the UN has become in relation to Israel. It feels like the UN, in its handling of Israel and the terror groups that attack it, has crossed a line, moving from a supposed impartial peacekeeper to an institution that enables, shields, and strengthens those who seek Israel’s destruction.
UNRWA: Facilitating Terrorism, Not Refugees
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), originally created to aid Palestinian refugees, has instead morphed into an organization that actively supports terror groups like Hamas. It’s hard to see UNRWA as anything other than a facilitator for terrorism when, time and again, its facilities are used to store weapons, hide militants, and launch attacks against Israeli civilians. The very schools and clinics that are supposed to serve Palestinians have been transformed into military outposts—launchpads for terror.
Imagine the bitter irony: buildings funded by international donors, intended to shelter the displaced and treat the wounded, are instead filled with rocket launchers and tunnels leading into Israel. UNRWA, which should be working to resolve the refugee crisis, has become part of the machinery of war.
Even worse is the direct involvement of UNRWA personnel in supporting Hamas’s terror campaign. Some employees celebrated the October 7, 2023, massacre on social media. Others actively helped Hamas in its planning and logistics. This isn’t accidental or incidental—it’s structural. When an agency like UNRWA repeatedly allows its resources to be used for violence, it’s no longer just an aid organization; it’s complicit in terrorism.
The October 7 Hamas Attack: UN Involvement and Complicity
The October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel, one of the bloodiest and most brutal in recent history, brought all of this to light. Over 1,200 Israeli civilians were slaughtered in their homes, while others were kidnapped and taken into Gaza. The evidence of UN complicity surfaced almost immediately as the world watched in horror.
UNRWA facilities, which were supposed to be neutral humanitarian spaces, were used as staging grounds for the attacks. Tunnels that Hamas used to infiltrate Israeli territory were found running underneath UN buildings. Even more damning were the ties between high-level Hamas leaders, like Yahya Sinwar, and individuals working within UNRWA. Sinwar, the mastermind of the attack, had long maintained connections with UNRWA personnel who actively facilitated Hamas’s operations.
Sinwar’s death today in an Israeli operation brought this to the forefront. Identification documents found at the scene confirmed deep ties between UNRWA and Hamas. These weren’t isolated incidents; they were part of a pattern that has gone unchecked for years. The UN, through agencies like UNRWA, has been aiding and abetting Hamas—an internationally recognized terrorist organization—by providing cover, resources, and even personnel.
Hezbollah and the UN: Allowing Terror to Thrive
The UN’s complicity doesn’t end with Hamas. In southern Lebanon, Hezbollah has built an entire war machine under the watchful eye of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL). UNIFIL was supposed to prevent Hezbollah from rearming and militarizing the region, but instead, it has done the exact opposite. Hezbollah has turned southern Lebanon into a fortress, with tens of thousands of rockets aimed at Israeli cities, all while UNIFIL stands by, doing nothing.
The so-called “buffer zone” in southern Lebanon, which was supposed to be kept free of weapons and militants, has become fully militarized. Villages are filled with rockets, tunnels are dug under homes, and weapons caches are hidden in schools. The entire area has been transformed into a forward operating base for Hezbollah, and UNIFIL has done nothing to stop it.
It seems as if UNIFIL is enabling Hezbollah’s activities. Whether through incompetence, corruption, or complicity, UNIFIL has allowed Hezbollah to flourish, turning a blind eye to the group’s activities, while Israel bears the brunt of the threat. Hezbollah’s growing power and influence in Lebanon, particularly along the Israeli border, are not just failures of the UN—they’re signs of its active complicity in the ongoing war against Israel.
The Israeli Invasion of Lebanon: Fighting Back Against UN-Enabled Terror
Israel has been forced to take matters into its own hands. With Hezbollah’s military buildup in southern Lebanon posing an existential threat, Israel launched an invasion to root out the terror group. This wasn’t a choice Israel made lightly—it was a necessity. Over 10,000 Israeli residents have had to leave their homes near the border with Lebanon because of the rockets being fired daily. This is the equivalent of an invasion when a nation has to vacate its territory because of these hostilities.
The entire region, under UN supervision, had been transformed into a heavily armed Hezbollah stronghold. UNIFIL, the very force meant to keep the peace, had allowed Hezbollah to embed itself into every facet of life in southern Lebanon. Schools, homes, and hospitals were being used to store weapons and build tunnels, all aimed at one target: Israel.
As Israeli forces moved in to dismantle this network, it became clear just how deeply the UN had failed. The buffer zone, which was supposed to be a demilitarized area, was anything but. Hezbollah had turned it into a war zone, with UNIFIL acting as little more than passive observers. The UN’s failure wasn’t just about incompetence but a betrayal of its mission. And as Israel fights to dismantle Hezbollah’s war machine, the Lebanese people pay the price for the UN’s complicity, trapped between terror and war.
UNRWA and Hezbollah: Turning Aid into Warfare
It’s not just in Lebanon and Gaza where the UN’s role becomes murky—it’s also in how aid, meant to alleviate suffering, has been turned into fuel for war. UNRWA and other UN agencies pour billions of dollars into Gaza and southern Lebanon, but much of this aid never reaches those it’s meant to help. Instead, it ends up in the hands of Hamas and Hezbollah, financing their military campaigns.
Concrete meant for rebuilding homes is used to build tunnels. Food and medicine are diverted to the black market, the profits funneled back into terrorist operations. The very aid meant to uplift and support the Palestinian and Lebanese people has been weaponized against Israel.
What does it say about an organization when the resources it provides are used to fuel terror? At what point does the UN, through its agencies, cease to be a humanitarian body and become a supplier of warfare?
The UN’s Anti-Israel Agenda: A Terrorist Campaign Disguised as Diplomacy?
The UN’s bias against Israel is nothing new, but when viewed through the lens of its actions—or inactions—it becomes something far more sinister. The UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) has passed more resolutions condemning Israel than any other country, including some of the world’s worst human rights violators. Syria, Iran, North Korea, and China all pale in comparison to the sheer volume of condemnation Israel receives from the UN.
And yet, while Israel is condemned for defending itself against terrorism, the UN turns a blind eye to the atrocities committed by Hamas, Hezbollah, and other terror groups. The UN’s agenda, it seems, is not about peace—it’s about undermining Israel at every turn, even if it means supporting those who commit acts of terror against it.
Agenda Item 7 of the UNHRC, which permanently singles out Israel for criticism, is a stark example of this. No other country faces such relentless scrutiny, and no other country is consistently portrayed as the aggressor, even when defending itself from unprovoked attacks. This isn’t just bias—it’s a systematic effort to delegitimize Israel’s right to exist and defend itself.
Conclusion: Is the UN a Terrorist Organization?
The evidence is overwhelming. From Gaza to Lebanon, from Hamas to Hezbollah, the UN has not just failed in its mission—it has actively enabled the forces that seek Israel’s destruction. Its agencies provide cover, resources, and legitimacy to terror groups. Its peacekeeping forces turn a blind eye to violations, and its diplomatic bodies work tirelessly to undermine Israel at every turn.
So, is the UN a terrorist organization? When an institution repeatedly sides with terror groups, facilitates their operations, and condemns the very state fighting for its survival, it’s hard not to ask the question. The UN may not strap on a suicide vest or fire a rocket, but through its actions—or lack thereof—it has become complicit in the very terror it was meant to prevent.
Until the UN reforms, until it holds itself accountable for its role in aiding and abetting terror, it will remain, in essence, an organization fighting against Israel, not for peace. And that, by any definition, is terror.