Supporters of suspended UNRWA staff protest in Beirut
STORY: School teacher Fathi al-Sharif was suspended for three months without pay as the U.N. agency investigated alleged activities "that are in violation of the Agency's regulatory framework governing staff conduct," the agency told Reuters in a statement.
UNRWA said it could not discuss further details. It did not say whether he was accused of membership of an armed group.
Sharif spoke at the protest on Wednesday (March 27), where a crowd had gathered to support him.
"I am rooted in this institution to serve my people, and I will keep serving these people because they deserve to be served," he said.
Several people told Reuters that he had been accused of links to Palestinian faction Hamas, which carried out a deadly attack in Israel in October.
Earlier this year, Israel accused 12 UNRWA employees in the Gaza Strip of taking part in the Hamas-led attack on Israeli soil on Oct. 7 that left 1,200 people dead, with more than 130 still held hostage by the group.
Israel's allegations prompted a suspension of funding by more than a dozen donors, many of whom have resumed funding.
