Lawmakers in each the Home and Senate formally launched laws that would halt U.S. funding to a United Nations company that’s been accused of selling antisemitism and financing associates of terrorist teams.
Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, on Friday launched a invoice concentrating on the United Nations Reduction and Works Company (UNRWA), which helps Palestinian refugees. In response to Roy, the company is an “anti-Israel” automobile that spreads hatred for Jews.
“UNRWA’s prolonged and detailed historical past of selling antisemitism, violence, and terrorism by way of ‘academic’ supplies, and its continued ties to Hamas, ought to utterly disqualify this corrupt entity from receiving any U.S. taxpayer funding,” Roy mentioned in an announcement. “UNRWA has failed to fulfill earlier commitments to cease its hostility towards Israel, and it’s an impediment to peace.”
“Israel is one in all our best allies and closest pals,” he continued. “We can’t say we really stand with them whereas serving to prop up a corrupt group like this. If our actions don’t match our phrases, then our phrase means nothing.”
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Roy’s feedback got here two days after Sen. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, rating member of the Senate Overseas Relations Committee, launched a companion invoice within the Senate.
“UNRWA has an extended historical past of using individuals related to terrorist actions like Hamas, selling antisemitic textbooks, and utilizing its faculties to retailer Hamas weapons. It’s unthinkable that U.S. taxpayer {dollars} could be used to assist fund such a company,” Risch mentioned in an announcement. “This laws will stop U.S. contributions to UNRWA except the administration certifies that the company will not be affiliated with U.S. designated overseas terrorist organizations and doesn’t assist antisemitic rhetoric. My colleagues and I’ll proceed working to carry the administration and UNRWA accountable till consequential reforms are made.”
UNRWA has repeatedly come underneath hearth for offering academic supplies that incite violence in opposition to Jews and Israel. According to an analysis by the Institute for Monitoring Peace and Cultural Tolerance in Faculty Schooling, for instance, Palestinian textbooks produced by UNRWA embrace content material selling terrorism, spreading antisemitism, and denying Israel’s existence. Newly equipped textbooks from final yr described Jews as “impure” and “inherently treacherous and hostile to Islam and Muslims.”
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The company additionally has issues with terror financing. In response to specialists on the Basis for Protection of Democracies, UNRWA since 2012 paid more than $4.8 million for well being care providers to the Union of Well being Work Committees, a Gaza-based entity affiliated with the Standard Entrance for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), which is designated by the U.S. as a terrorist group. In 2020, UNRWA paid $122,000 to a Lebanese hospital owned and operated by Iran-backed Hezbollah, which can be a U.S.-designated terrorist group, in line with the FDD.
Specialists applauded lawmakers for searching for to halt U.S. funding to UNRWA however warned laws could not work.
“Bravo to Rep. Chip Roy and Sen. Jim Risch for making an attempt to stem U.S. taxpayer monies going to the perversion known as UNRWA,” Daniel Pipes, president of the Center East Discussion board, informed Fox Information Digital. “Sadly, nonetheless, the failure of all prior congressional efforts means that this one too will fail. That is as a result of the overseas coverage institutions in each Washington and Jerusalem see these funds as essential to preserve issues from erupting within the West Financial institution, Gaza, and past. If UNRWA’s evil is ever to be halted, it must be by way of different means than depriving it of American funding.”
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In 2017, the U.S. contributed practically $350 million to UNRWA, whose funds is sort of solely composed of contributions from overseas governments – above all of the U.S. The Trump administration ended U.S. funding to UNRWA the next yr, reducing $300 million of deliberate assist.
Three years later, nonetheless, President Biden restored greater than $200 million of American help to the U.N. company. As of July 2022, the Biden administration had given $618 million to UNRWA, in line with the company and the White Home.
“Taxpayers ought to know whether or not their cash is reaching Hamas and different Iran-backed terror teams,” wrote Julia Schulman and Richard Goldberg in a 2021 op-ed.
UNRWA has more and more grown in measurement, dwarfing different U.N. refugee efforts with a funds of about $1.5 billion and a employees of about 30,000 individuals.
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UNRWA is the one U.N. refugee company devoted to a inhabitants of only one origin – the Palestinians – whereas all of the world’s different refugees are served by the U.N. excessive commissioner for refugees.
The U.N. defines a refugee as somebody outdoors their nation of nationality as a result of they’re frightened of being persecuted by that nation for causes of race, faith, nationality, membership of a selected social group, or political opinion. This definition applies to all peoples world wide – except for the Palestinians, who underneath UNRWA are thought of refugees at beginning, even when they by no means fled persecution.
UNRWA did not reply to a request for remark for this story.