Trump to maintain freeze on UNRWA funding
US President Donald Trump is set to maintain the freeze on funding for the UN Palestinian relief agency UNRWA, a White House official said on February 3rd, The New Arab reports.
The President’s move coincides with his meeting with Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington on February 4th.
The US was UNRWA’s biggest donor, providing between $300 million to $400 million a year to the agency.
UNRWA provides aid, healthcare and education services to millions of Palestinians in Gaza, the Occupied West Bank, East Jerusalem as well as to Palestinian refugees in Syria, Lebanon and Jordan.
Netanyahu has repeatedly criticised UNRWA and has accused the agency of anti-Israel incitement, claiming that some of its staff have been “involved in terrorist activities against Israel.”
The Biden administration halted funding in January 2024 after Israel accused roughly a dozen UNRWA staff members of involvement in the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel. The US congress then officially suspended funding to UNRWA until March 2025.
The UN has pledged to investigate the accusations made and has repeatedly asked Israel for evidence, which it says has not been provided.
During his first term from 2017 to 2021, President Donald Trump cut off funding to UNRWA, citing concern over its value, stating that the Palestinians needed to renew peace negotiations with Israel.
Israel’s UN ambassador, Danny Danon, on January 3rd applauded Trump’s move. Danon stated, “At the same time, UNRWA has long lost its status as an independent humanitarian organisation, and has turned into a terrorist authority controlled by Hamas under the guise of a humanitarian agency.”
UNRWA Commissioner, General Philippe Lazzarini stated last week that the agency has been subjected to a “fierce disinformation campaign” to “portray the agency as a terrorist organisation.”
The New Arab
