Former FAO Director Claims He Was Fired Over Criticisms of Israeli Policies in Gaza

A senior UN agency director has stated that he lost his position after criticizing Israeli policies in Gaza. Ben Davis, formerly the Director of Rural Transformation and Gender Equality at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), informed AFP news agency on Wednesday that he was notified in July his contract would not be renewed due to alleged breaches of impartiality rules.

Davis stated that he was accused of organizing weekly silent protests at the Rome-based organization. "They accused me of organizing these moments of silence on the situation of starvation and famine in Gaza," Davis said. He also faced criticism regarding a report he contributed to concerning food availability in Gaza and humanitarian law, which was published in May. "We were told to take it down," he said. "We weren't allowed to make any references to humanitarian law."

During a filmed forestry session on Tuesday, FAO Director-General Qu Dongyu appeared to issue a warning to FAO staff, stating, "we don't allow you to play the game here of human rights." Qu added, "Of course, human rights is very important, but we have the human rights agency in Geneva. If you want to take care, go there. That's why some senior members play the political game here, I fire him... You should follow the FAO constitution... I will fire more people if they are against the law."

The FAO did not respond to an AFP request for comment. When asked if the director-general's remarks referred to him, Davis responded "absolutely," adding that Qu "has already scolded me in public in the past for being too political." Davis also expressed concern over threats of further terminations. According to Davis, participation in the weekly moments of silence reached hundreds at its peak, though attendance has since dropped to 30 or 40 people.