A legal battle between the family of an Oct.7, 2023 attack victim and the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) has become a lightning rod for ongoing uncertainty about the agency’s future in the Gaza Strip.Israeli civil rights attorney and president of the Shurat HaDin Law Center, Nitsana Darshan-Leitner, told Fox News Digital that she filed a lawsuit in the District Court of Jerusalem on behalf of the family of 21-year-old Yonatan Samerano, who was murdered outside of Kibbutz Be’eri after fleeing the Nova music festival on Oct.
7, 2023.Samerano’s body was returned to his family after 625 days in captivity, during the final stage of hostage releases, Darshan-Leitner said.According to Darshan-Leitner, after Samerano was shot to death by terrorists, his body was picked up by UNRWA workers, placed in an UNRWA vehicle and kidnapped to Gaza.
"Although the kidnapping was by UNRWA’s workers, UNRWA never revealed the place of the body, never cooperated with Israeli authorities to tell them where Yonatan Samerano was held and never admitted that it was done by its workers.And therefore we decided to sue UNRWA on behalf of the family."TRUMP BRINGS NEW HEAT TO CONTROVERSIAL UN AGENCY AS ALLEGED HAMAS TIES ENGULF SCORES OF EMPLOYEESThe body of Yonatan Samerano was recovered by Israel after being taken to Gaza by terrorists, who were allegedly employees of UNRWA.
(Hostages and Missing Families Forum Headquarters)The difficulty in bringing suit against UNRWA has been the diplomatic immunity the organization enjoys by virtue of the Charter of the United Nations and the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations.Darshan-Leitner said that the charter "specifically prohibits any act of violence, let alone terrorism" and that because "UNRWA was aiding and abetting terror organizations and participating in acts of terrorism, they can no longer enjoy the immunity granted by the treaty."The Israeli Kness...