The Biden administration announced on Friday that it is halting funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), following allegations of involvement by 12 UNRWA staff members in the October 7 attacks by Hamas against Israel.
“The United States is extremely troubled by the allegations that twelve UNRWA employees may have been involved in the October 7 Hamas terrorist attack on Israel,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said. He added that the Department of State has temporarily paused additional funding for UNRWA pending a review of these allegations and the United Nations’ response to them.
The move comes after the Biden administration had previously delivered $75 million to UNRWA in October, circumventing a congressional block that had been in place due to concerns over Hamas members being employed by the organization.
In response to these allegations, UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini announced that the agency is initiating an investigation. Lazzarini said that the contracts of the suspected individuals had been terminated ahead of the investigation, emphasizing that any UNRWA employee found involved in acts of terror would face accountability, including criminal prosecution. He strongly condemned the October 7 attacks and called for the immediate release of all Israeli hostages.
UNRWA, established following Israel’s 1948 War of Independence, provides aid and services to Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, and Lebanon, including housing, food, education, and healthcare. But it has also long been accused of supporting and promoting terrorism against Israel.
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5 Responses
Finally something is being done about this terror organization.
Switzerland stopped funding UNRWA a while ago, and it’s time for the rest of the western world to follow suit.
1. Not just the USA, the Wall Street Journal reports other western countries.
2. The agency suspended some employees for working for Hamas
3. Most UN agencies in Gaza and the West Bank are supporting Palestinian terrorism
Almost every single UNRWA employee located in Gaza is implicitly involved and responsible for what happened on October 7. The allegations that 12 employees directly participated is obviously very serious but doesn’t mitigate by one iota the responsibility the entire organization bears for October 7 as well as all terror activities until then.
Too little, too late.