Outraged UNRWA teachers in Lebanon led their students on a 3-day strike after one of their colleagues was suspended for glorifying Palestinian terrorists’ murder of Jewish worshippers in a synagogue. Hamas denounced UNRWA’s decision, blasting its reliance on UN Watch’s report. Palestinians across Lebanon are in an uproar — see articles, photos and videos below.
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https://www.youtube.com/shorts/AQAjD9ckr7o
NOTE: Numerous videos below were deleted after we reported their contents.
Video: “Scenes from the angry demonstrations that took place in several streets in Nahr al-Bared camp, due to the UNRWA decision against Professor Riyad Nimr.”
https://twitter.com/CampsPost/status/1637862565827993624
UNRWA teacher Riyad Mustafa Nimr, also known as Abu Hadi, has been made into a TikTok hero for his support of terrorism:
UNRWA's Riad Nimer liked a post praising a gruesome Jerusalem synagogue attack where Palestinian terrorists used axes to murder five Jewish worshippers and a Druze police officer. The post lauds the attack as “a unique and heroic act of self-sacrifice.” /9 https://t.co/Iq8ft8HfFn pic.twitter.com/3TFcHLoH0B
— Hillel Neuer (@HillelNeuer) March 14, 2023
Hamas denounces UNRWA’s decision to punish teacher for supporting martyr Ibrahim Nabulsi:
(Palestinian Information Center) — The Hamas movement in Lebanon denounced UNRWA’s decision to punish Professor Riyad Mustafa because of his stance on the martyr Ibrahim Nabulsi.
The Mass Action Council of the “Hamas” movement in Lebanon said: “We condemn UNRWA’s decision, and declare our rejection of it, and we consider that this behavior of UNRWA is repressive behavior that contradicts the human right to freedom, thinking and expression.”
The Hamas council rejected UNRWA’s reliance on UN Watch, which it said implements Zionist policies and has hostile stances towards the rights of the Palestinian people.
Hamas called on UNRWA to quickly reverse this unjust decision, to restore Professor Mustafa to his work immediately, and to stop this policy, which is contrary to the most basic human rights, as he put it.
Hamas stressed the unity of the Palestinian political and popular position in Lebanon, supporting the cause of Professor Mustafa and opposing the behavior of “UNRWA.”
Hamas supporters in Lebanon saluted Professor Riyad Mustafa for his patriotic stance, considering that this is not strange for teachers and all the Palestinian people.
UNRWA suspended Mr. Riyad Mustafa from his work as a teacher at the Agency’s Al-Manara School in Nahr Al-Bared, northern Lebanon, under the pretext of publishing patriotic material on social media, which it considered incitement and a violation of neutrality.
This caused a great uproar in the Palestinian political, educational and popular circles in Lebanon. It was not confined to the borders of the camp where his work center is, but rather extended to all camps.
March 21 — The UNRWA Teachers Union in Lebanon described UNRWA’s response to the moves rejecting the dismissal of teacher Riyad Mustafa as “not positive developments” and announced its continuation of its escalatory moves until the expelled teacher’s return to work, indicating that the issue “has turned into a It is an issue of public opinion and does not concern the professor exclusively.
This came in a statement by the federation, in which it criticized the response of the agency’s director in Lebanon, Dorothy Klaus, during meetings that took place between the federation and the agency’s management yesterday, Monday, which announced the suspension of the investigation committee with The teacher for an infinite period.
The agency’s response stated: “In view of the complexities associated with the case of Mr. Riyad Mustafa, and to give time for further contacts with the various stakeholders, including donors, to clarify the case, it was agreed to freeze the investigation process and any action that might be taken on the basis of the investigation.”
UNRWA added, “This freeze does not include paid administrative leave, which was announced as an Agency-wide measure in other UNRWA fields of operations, and this is in line with measures previously taken by the Agency in similar cases.”
The Teachers Union criticized the agency’s response and considered it a “suspension of all solutions” given that it does not include returning the professor to his work, and indicates that he will remain out of work for an indefinite period.
The Union affirmed that its goal was focused on resolving the problem in cooperation with the UNRWA administration and all relevant parties, and “it is not looking for exporting victories,” and indicated that the meeting with Klaus was negative, as it ended without agreeing on satisfactory solutions that would end the effects of this issue.
The union said that it “sees the recent decision of the UNRWA administration as a dangerous development, which indicates the administration’s lack of seriousness in cooperating in order to find a convincing solution to end this crisis.”
And the Union announced its continuation of its escalating movements “until the teacher returns to his work center by continuing to sit-ins inside schools for tomorrow, Tuesday, at twelve o’clock, provided that a position is taken based on the development of events , because the issue has turned into a public opinion issue and is not exclusively concerned with Professor Riyad. ”
The UNRWA schools continue their strike in Nahr Al-Bared camp, while Al-Beddawi camp joined the strike, in protest against the dismissal of teacher Riyad Mustafa, because of his sharing of patriotic publications on social media.
The Facts: UNRWA Chief Instructed Lebanon Director to Suspend Teacher :
An UNRWA teacher, Mr. Riyad Mustafa, a resident of Nahr el-Bared camp, received a letter from the Director of UNRWA in Lebanon, Ms. Dorothée Klaus, on 17 March, informing him of the decision to place him on compulsory paid administrative leave, due to a publication that the agency deemed to violate its neutrality policy. pursued by the latter. This decision was met with overwhelming Palestinian anger, which was represented by sit-ins and demonstrations, in addition to what was widely reported on social media.
The UNRWA employee received an e-mail message from the Director of UNRWA in Lebanon, Ms. Dorothée Klaus, who in turn received a letter from the UNRWA Commissioner-General, Mr. Philippe Lazzarini, regarding Mr. Riyad. In Mrs. Klaus’ letter, it was stated that the employee, Riyad, must hand over his labor card and sign that he had received the letter, and that he is on compulsory paid work leave until the end of the investigation with him.
According to a statement by the human rights organization “Witness” based in Lebanon, the reasons that prompted the UNRWA Commissioner-General personally to decide to refer Mr. Riyad for investigation go back to a video that Mr. Riyad had published in August 2022, which includes the funeral of the martyr Ibrahim Al-Nabulsi, who was killed by the occupation forces in August and his mother’s participation in carrying his body, in addition to that Professor Riyad had in 2014 liked a video from his own account.
According to the teacher’s testimony to the human rights organization (‘Witness’), UNRWA says that the teacher’s behavior does not comply with the protocol of United Nations staff regarding commitment to impartiality and the values and principles of the United Nations that prevent the use or promotion of violence, including “Palestinian violence” against a state Occupation.
UNRWA Director Meets Fatah to Contain Protests;
Palestinian camps witnessed a solidarity campaign with the teacher Riyadh Mustafa, and schools in Nahr Al-Bared camp closed their doors in protest.
A delegation from the Teachers Union in UNRWA schools visited Klaus yesterday, and the Union affirmed in a statement that the Palestinian people “will not submit to blackmail by Zionist institutions and do not agree to taking the agency hostage to the dictates of these institutions and some countries.”
Klaus had preempted the escalation against the agency and its institutions in the camps, by requesting a meeting with the reformist movement in the Fatah movement, to which Mustafa is credited, to contain the situation.
The meeting, which was held on Sunday, was attended by the head of the movement, Mahmoud Issa (Al-Lino), and a member of the leadership, Edward Ketoura, who called for resolving the issue in order to defuse the tension.
Riad Mustafa, a teacher at one of the #UNRWA schools at Naher Al-Bared, was prevented, on the 17th of March, from practicing his work, as a form of punishment for sharing on his Facebook page, a video of the farewell of the mother of the Martyr #Ibrahim_AlNabulsi to her son, pic.twitter.com/CwgSr3iVPd
— أخبار الساحة (@Akhbaralsaha) March 20, 2023
Video, March 19th — “The Palestinian camps in Lebanon show solidarity with the son of the Nahr al-Bared camp, Professor Riyad Mustafa, and rise up in revolt against the arbitrary policy of UNRWA against its employees, under the pretext of neutrality in the Palestinian cause.”
A general strike in Nahr Al-Bared to reject UNRWA’s dismissal of teacher for sharing publications:
Monday, March 20 — The Nahr Al-Bared camp for Palestinian refugees is witnessing a general strike, which includes the institutions operating in the camp, with the exception of the employees of the Health and Environment Department at UNRWA, in solidarity with the teacher Riyad Mustafa, and in rejection of the agency’s dismissal decision, due to his sharing of Palestinian patriotic publications.
The strike came at the call of the Palestinian factions in the northern region, as part of an escalation it started against the dismissal of teacher Mustafa.
And the factions’ statement yesterday, Sunday, said: “We, from our responsible position, demand the UNRWA administration not to align itself with the policy of the Zionist enemy, and to stand up to the daily crime against our people in our beloved homeland, Palestine. We will always remain defenders of the rights of our people.”
The factions called on UNRWA to immediately retract the decision to dismiss Professor Riyad Mustafa, “otherwise the strike will spread to all the camps in Lebanon.” According to the statement.
Mother of the martyr Ibrahim Al-Nabulsi shows solidarity with the dismissed teacher
Solidarity activities and angry reactions continue to the decision to dismiss the teacher, for sharing publications of the Palestinian martyr Ibrahim Al-Nabulsi. This was considered by UNRWA as a violation of “neutrality”.
The mother of the martyr, Ibrahim Al-Nabulsi, in the occupied West Bank, sent a message of support and solidarity with the teacher, Riyad. In it, she denounced the agency’s decision to dismiss him, and affirmed her solidarity and the people of occupied Palestine with the dismissed teacher.
The martyr’s mother called for standing with the dismissed professor from the UNRWA-affiliated Al-Manara School because of his patriotic and humanitarian stances. The mother of the martyr extended greetings to the Nahr Al-Bared camp and the Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, and noted the role of the camps in the Palestinian struggle.
In turn, the Palestinian Association for Human Rights “Shahid” confirmed that the agency’s decision to dismiss teacher Mustafa is a clear violation of human rights. The foundation indicated that “the right to expression is a sacred civil right, and it is one of the first-generation rights stipulated in Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948, which states that everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression.”
“Shahid” criticized the reasons that prompted the Agency’s Commissioner- General personally to take a decision to refer Professor Riyad for investigation, and it became clear that this was due to a video that Professor Riyad had published in August 2022, which includes the funeral of the martyr Ibrahim Al-Nabulsi, who was killed by the occupation forces in August 2022, and his mother’s participation in the pregnancy. His corpse, in addition to the fact that Professor Riyad had in 2014 admired a video from his own account.
“Shahid” criticized the agency’s consideration of this as “not compatible with the protocol of United Nations staff regarding commitment to impartiality and the values and principles of the United Nations that prohibit the use or promotion of violence, including “Palestinian violence” against the occupying state. ”
“UNRWA” had clarified its procedure through a brief statement in which it said: “One of the agency’s teachers in the northern region received a letter on March 17 informing him of the decision to place him on fully paid administrative leave, and the investigation process will begin immediately on Monday to consider the alleged non-compliance with the protocol.” United Nations staff regarding adherence to the values and principles of the United Nations, she said.
UNRWA clarified that this decision was taken at the level of UNRWA as a whole regarding similar cases as well in other regions of the Agency’s operations, and it is not specific to Lebanon.
The Teachers Union continues its movements and escalation against the decision of UNRWA
The UNRWA Teachers’ Union in Lebanon indicated its continued movement and field escalation against the agency’s decision to dismiss teacher Mustafa. The head of the sectoral committee in the union held an urgent meeting with the Director-General of UNRWA in Lebanon, Dorothy Klaus, and informed her of the union’s rejection of the decision.
The union affirmed its rejection of “the blatant interference in the privacy of UNRWA staff by the Zionist organization UN. Watch , which monitors the work of international institutions. ”
The federation affirmed its commitment to “protecting this international institution, the main political witness to our cause.” He added in a statement: “While some consider that UNRWA was found as an ambush by the United Nations against the Palestinian people, or as a substitute for the soil of our motherland. In this context, we affirm that the presence of UNRWA is merely a witness to the occupation of Palestine and that all grants and donations are not worth an atom.” One soil from Palestine.
The union also confirmed the completion of the movement by suspending studies today, Monday, March 20, 2023 at twelve o’clock in the afternoon, in all UNRWA schools in Lebanon, and the active participation in the sit-ins that will be organized in the workplace.
It should be noted that the UNRWA action against Professor Riyad Mustafa is not the first of its kind against teachers due to opinions or activity related to the Palestinian national issue.
In February 2022, UNRWA arrested the Palestinian teacher at Jabal al-Tabour School in Nahr al-Bared camp, Muhammad Khalil (Abu Arab), with a decision to deprive him of education in its schools, on the grounds of his political and patriotic activity and his affiliation with the Fatah movement. This sparked widespread anger and movement before he was reinstated.
In pictures: a protest march and the closure of schools in “Al-Bared” in solidarity with Professor Riyad (Al Quds News)
A protest march was launched this morning, Saturday, in Nahr Al-Bared camp, and schools were closed in solidarity with Professor Riyad Mustafa, and in denunciation of the unjust UNRWA decision against him, with the participation of the popular committees, all Palestinian factions, popular movements and events.
The protest march came as a first step after UNRWA referred the educator, Riyad Mustafa, at Al-Manara School from the North, to investigation, after he shared a video clip on the social media of the martyr Ibrahim Al-Nabulsi.
The administration of UNRWA in Lebanon has suspended Professor Riyad Mustafa, a teacher at its Al-Manara School in northern Lebanon, for sharing patriotic publications of the Palestinian martyr Ibrahim Al-Nabulsi on the social networking sites.
The UNRWA Teachers Union in Lebanon said in a statement, a copy of which was sent to the Palestinian refugees, that the agency arrested Professor Riyad and referred him to investigation, and asked him to withdraw all his papers related to his job.
The federation denounced the measure against the teacher, and considered it “a crossing of all red lines, which cannot be accepted at all.”
And the union added, “The martyrs are a crown above our heads, and we cherish them and are proud of them. The UNRWA administration must withdraw this procedure immediately.”
The federation called on the agency’s management to return the professor to his workplace without delay. He hinted at resorting to “a broad and unprecedented escalation in all schools, and all of our Palestinian people are with us,” according to the statement.
The union gave UNRWA management until Friday evening to return the teacher to his work, under penalty of “suspension of lessons in all UNRWA schools in Lebanon in the last three classes and the establishment of sit-ins in schools tomorrow, Saturday, to be followed by more escalatory movements.”
The union called on “Palestinian factions, popular movements, committees, and events to take a clear position on these arbitrary decisions and to reject this farce that aims to de-nationalize our Palestinian people, whose land is under occupation.”
It should be noted that the UNRWA action against Professor Riyad Mustafa is not the first of its kind against teachers due to opinions or activity related to the Palestinian national issue.
In February 2022, UNRWA arrested the Palestinian teacher at Jabal al-Tabour School in Nahr al-Bared camp, Muhammad Khalil (Abu Arab), with a decision to deprive him of education in its schools, on the grounds of his political and patriotic activity and his affiliation with the Fatah movement. This sparked widespread anger and movement before he was reinstated.
March 21; “Major escalation in strike: Private sources from the Lebanon refugee camps have reported major escalation steps against the UNRWA, following its recent decision to investigate the teacher Riyad Mustafa. “No cap on sit-ins, the strike will cover all Palestinian camps, unless the agency responds with Mr. Riad’s return to normal work,” activists noted.
VIDEO — Strike by the Teachers Union in solidarity with Mr. Mustafa Riyad.
El Buss camp: speech of Mr. Jihad Al-Hanafi during a solidarity rally with Mr. Riyad Mustafa in El Buss camp, in the city of Tyre; and Speech of Mr. Fatah Sharif, President of the Teachers Union,
Al-Badawi camp: “Al-Badawi camp stands in solidarity with Nahr al-Bared camp, and is semi-completely committed to the strike and closure of schools.”
VIDEO reel — Closing schools in Ain El-Hilweh camp in solidarity with the case of Mr. Riyad Mustafa
Update — UNRWA announced a freeze on the investigation with Professor “Riyadh Mustafa” indefinitely, which means the professor has been removed from his job, hitting with the wall all popular and factional demands for the return of “Riyadh” to education. The agency’s statement triggered public discontent in the camps, as calls for major movements began to spread across all Palestinian camps in Lebanon, reaching the general strike.
- Commenter Mustafa Belalli: Building communication between His Excellency Ambassador Ashraf Dabour [Palestinian rep to Lebanon] and the secretary of the factions with the Director of the UNRWA Agency in Lebanon, I promised to stop the investigation and the actions taken against the employee Riyad Mustafa until the case is resolved.
- Commenter Mohammad: “The most important question is whether it is a public interest to serve the cause of Palestine or a special interest for the virtuous professor — and are the students the most affected by these strikes?”