The US has temporarily suspended “additional” funding to the main UN agency in the Gaza Strip over allegations that some of its member states were “involved” in the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack in Israel. .
Richard Goldberg, who served as a National Security Council advisor during the Trump administration, told Fox News Digital that UNRWA has read enough coverage of the Belt and Road initiative and is confident that Congress will cut off U.S. funding. “You can see what's going on,” he said.
“This is a public relations campaign aimed at pre-empting parliamentary action. Nothing changes the fact that UNRWA is complicit in Hamas' war crimes and remains a major obstacle to peace,” the current Democratic Party said. Mr. Goldberg, a senior advisor at the Foundation for Defense of the Principles, said: Added.
Twelve staff members of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) are suspected of being “involved” in the attack, and U.S. funding will be resumed following a UN investigation.
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Citing information provided by Israeli authorities, UNRWA said on Friday that it would terminate the contract with the accused official, “protecting the agency's ability to provide humanitarian assistance” and “revealing the truth without delay,” according to Reuters, citing information provided by Israeli authorities. They announced that they would conduct an investigation to find out.
The US State Department said in a press release that Secretary of State Antony Blinken had discussed a “comprehensive and independent” investigation with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. He said the United States must take “full responsibility for those who participated in the heinous attack of October 7.”
Philippe Lazzarini, Director-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), will hold a press conference in Jerusalem on October 27, 2023. (Mostafa Alkharouf/Anadolu, via Getty Images)
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant praised the US decision as “an important step in holding UNRWA accountable.”
“At least 12 UNRWA personnel took part in the horrific attack on October 7th. These are 'humanitarian workers' whose salaries are paid by international donations while shedding their blood,” Gallant said after the State Department's announcement. stated in a press release. announcement.
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“Significant changes need to be made to ensure that international efforts, funding, and humanitarian efforts no longer fuel Hamas terrorism and the killing of Israelis,” Gallant wrote. “Acts of terrorism disguised as humanitarian operations are a disgrace to the United Nations and the principles it claims to represent.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomes U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on an official visit as part of his Middle East tour in Tel Aviv, Israel, January 9, 2024. (Kobi Gideon (GPO) / Handout/Anadolu, via Getty Images)
The decision follows mounting suspicions that began after an Israeli citizen taken hostage by Hamas in December 2023 said upon his release that he remained imprisoned in a UNRWA teacher's attic. . Another hostage claimed that a Gazan doctor (allegedly a pediatrician) helped hold another hostage in Hamas custody.
UNRWA pushed back on the claims as “baseless” after Israeli journalists did not immediately respond to requests for additional information, saying: in an official statement“UNRWA and other agencies of the United Nations have asked journalists to provide further information about what we consider to be very serious allegations. Despite repeated requests, journalists have not responded. '' he claimed.
The IDF claimed to have discovered documents, video footage and photographs of Palestinian children used as trained fighters by Hamas Islamic Jihad. (IDF Spokesperson Unit)
UNRWA faces several allegations, including corruption and direct support of Hamas. X Documented in community notes. Reuters reported on posts by a former principal of a UNRWA school who helped build rockets for Islamic Jihad while employed by UNRWA, as well as several UNRWA teachers and administrators celebrating the October 7 attack. Ta.
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The State Department under former President Donald Trump severed ties with UNRWA in 2018, but President Biden resumed relations shortly after taking office. He continued to improve spending for the organization, with funding exceeding $1 billion.
GAZA CITY, GAZA – JANUARY 30: UNRWA workers walk in front of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) building during a strike to demand higher salaries due to rising costs of living in Gaza City, Gaza, on January 30. A man walking. 2023. (Photo by Ali Jadallah/Anadolu Agency, Getty Images) (Photo by Ali Jadallah/Anadolu Agency, Getty Images)
Blinken too Visit to UNRWA headquarters November after visiting Jordan during a trip to the Middle East. During his visit, he praised the organization's humanitarian work in Gaza amid reports of UNRWA staff's involvement in Hamas attacks.
Thomas Hand of Israel stands on East 55th Street in Manhattan on November 15, 2023. Behind him is a poster of an Israeli who was abducted by Hamas during the October 7, 2023 terrorist attack. Mr Hand's daughter Emily, who was eight years old at the time of the attack, has been missing since that day and is believed to be held hostage in Gaza. (Sydney Borchers/Fox News Digital)
The House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee has announced that it will launch its own investigation into the alleged links between UNRWA and Hamas around Christmas 2023. Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) asserted that there is “extensive evidence of a troubling relationship between UNRWA and Hamas.” And it's much deeper than is known. ”
Goldberg compared the recent decision to the Biden administration's approach to Iranian assets after the Hamas attack, pressuring the White House to refreeze Iranian assets due to direct ties to terrorist organizations. There were many people there.
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“This is very similar to the administration's response to the post-October 7 protests over $6 billion to Iran,” Goldberg argued. “Faced with impending legislation, the government claimed to have frozen the funds, but there is no law to force that temporary freeze.”
“Again, I'm concerned that the administration wants to block the aid law ahead of Congress, but will only open the spigot once additional legislation is passed,” he said.
Fox News Digital's Adam Sabes contributed to this report.
