The UN agency for Palestinians UNRWA needs to be able to continue its work while allegations that some its 13,000 staff in Gaza were involved in the Oct. 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel are investigated, the EU's top diplomat Josep Borrell said on Monday.
"Nobody else can do what UNRWA is doing, allegations need to be verified ... let's wait for the investigations to take place," Borrell said ahead of a meeting of EU development ministers in Brussels.
"In the meantime, people have to continue to eat, have to continue going to the doctors."
This comes as the Israeli military rescued two hostages in a dramatic raid under fire from the Gaza Strip early Monday, marking a small but symbolically significant success in its quest to bring home over 100 captives believed to be held by the Hamas militant group.
At least 50 Palestinians were killed in airstrikes that were part of the raid, according to Palestinian hospital officials.
The raid took place in Rafah, the city on the southern edge of the Gaza Strip where 1.4 million Palestinians have fled to escape fighting elsewhere in the Israel-Hamas war.