Daughter of former Gaza hostage confronts UN over UNRWA funding despite Hamas ties

Neta Heiman Mina, whose 84-year-old mother Ditza Heiman was held hostage by Hamas for nearly two months in 2023, addressed a UN Human Rights Council panel in Geneva on September 15, 2026. She confronted the UN over continued funding of UNRWA, citing that an UNRWA teacher held her mother captive and that other agency employees were linked to the October 7 massacre.

Neta Heiman Mina, whose 84-year-old mother Ditza Heiman was taken hostage by Hamas on October 7, 2023, and held for nearly two months, addressed the 63rd Session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on September 15, 2026. Speaking during a panel on human rights education, Mina confronted the UN over its continued funding of UNRWA despite the agency's ties to Hamas. She stated that for 48 days of her mother's 53-day captivity, she was held by an UNRWA teacher named Abed, who kept her trapped in his attic in terrible conditions with very little food. Mina also questioned why Suhail al-Hindi, a Hamas member, was allowed to be in charge of 8,000 teachers in Gaza. Her statement came on the heels of a UN Watch report claiming UNRWA has substantially overstated its progress on institutional changes, with only 13 of 50 recommendations from the Colonna review fulfilled as prescribed, while underlying issues involving terrorism and incitement remain unaddressed.