Amarillo Gazette

WASHINGTON, DC — Today, Congressman Ronny Jackson (TX-13) has proposed the Uncovering UNRWA's Terrorist Crimes Act, a bill aimed at prohibiting any further funding from the United States to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA). The legislation also includes a provision that requires the Secretary of State to submit a report to Congress detailing the funding provided by the United States to UNRWA. This report seeks to shed light on the amount of taxpayer dollars that the Biden administration has allocated to this organization, which has been accused of having ties to terrorism.

The United States has historically provided billions of dollars to UNRWA, until former President Trump decided to halt all payments to the organization in 2018, describing it as an "irredeemably flawed operation." However, shortly after assuming office, President Biden reinstated funding for UNRWA. The Biden administration recently announced a temporary pause in funding following allegations that UNRWA staff members were directly involved in the attacks carried out by Hamas against Israel on October 7, 2023.

Congressman Jackson, in an interview with the Washington Free Beacon, expressed his concerns about UNRWA's activities. He stated, "There is a reason that President Trump halted all funding to UNRWA during his administration. It is an anti-Israel, anti-Jewish organization that promotes terrorism and anti-Semitism. UNRWA is also one of the largest money laundering and child-trafficking organizations in the world that works directly with Hamas to hire teachers to indoctrinate innocent children." Jackson emphasized that the United States should not be supporting an organization that enables and promotes terrorism.

Congresswoman Elise Stefanik, the GOP Conference Chairwoman, praised Congressman Jackson's initiative and criticized President Biden for resuming funding to UNRWA. She remarked, "Joe Biden failed the American people when he reversed President Trump's decision to cut off U.S. taxpayer dollars from going to the antisemitic UNRWA. I'm grateful for Congressman Ronny Jackson's leadership in introducing critical legislation to end U.S. funding to UNRWA and hold UNRWA accountable for the direct role their employees had in the barbaric October 7th terrorist attacks against Israel."

The proposed legislation has garnered support from several other representatives, including Mike Bost (IL-12), Brian Babin (TX-36), August Pfluger (TX-11), Pat Fallon (TX-04), Beth Van Duyne (TX-24), Troy Nehls (TX-22), Keith Self (TX-03), Jeff Van Drew (NJ-02), Ralph Norman (SC-05), Lauren Boebert (CO-03), Carol Miller (WV-01), Jack Bergman (MI-01), Gus Bilirakis (FL-12), Harriet Hageman (WY-AL), Scott Perry (PA-10), and Mike Lawler (NY-17).

The legislation aims to address concerns about the alleged ties between UNRWA and terrorist activities, as well as the misuse of funds and potential indoctrination of children. The bill seeks to hold UNRWA accountable and ensure that American taxpayer dollars are not being used to support terrorism.

For more information, the full bill text can be accessed here, and additional background information from the Washington Free Beacon is available here.

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