News
Latest News
news bulletin
Breaking Headlines
Israel-Gaza War Updates
Variety and Tech
Sports News
Middle East News
World News
Lebanon News
Press Highlights
Lebanon Economy
News Bulletin Reports
Other News
Breaking Headlines
Israel-Gaza War Updates
Variety and Tech
Sports News
Middle East News
World News
Lebanon News
Press Highlights
Lebanon Economy
News Bulletin Reports
Beirut
21
o
Mount Lebanon
23
o
Metn
23
o
Keserwan
23
o
North
23
o
South
22
o
Bekaa
28
o
Live
Video
Audio
Schedule
shows
العربية
watching now
Video Clips
SUBSCRIBE
Home
Notification
Live
Video
Audio
shows
Beirut
21
o
Mount Lebanon
23
o
Metn
23
o
Keserwan
23
o
North
23
o
South
22
o
Bekaa
28
o
News
Programs
The News
Breaking Headlines
Israel-Gaza War Updates
Variety and Tech
Sports News
Middle East News
World News
Lebanon News
Press Highlights
Lebanon Economy
News Bulletin Reports
Programs
Documentaries
Lebanon’s Centennial
News Bulletin
The Untold History
Talk Show
Series
Sports
Variety
Other
Comedy
Oldies
Breaking News
Latest News
Highlighted News
Most Read
Videos
العربية
Watch the latest programs and the latest developments on your favorite screen
Shows
Join millions of followers
Who We Are
Contact Us
Advertise With Us
Careers
Channel frequencies
Privacy Policy
Terms and Conditions
US pause on funding UNRWA may become permanent
Israel-Gaza War Updates
2024-03-13 | 05:54
High views
Share
Share
5
min
US pause on funding UNRWA may become permanent
US officials are preparing for a pause on funding the main UN agency for Palestinians to become permanent due to opposition in Congress, even as the Biden administration insists the aid group's humanitarian work is indispensable.
The United States, along with more than a dozen countries, suspended its funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in January after Israel accused 12 of the agency's 13,000 employees in Gaza of participating in the deadly Oct. 7 Hamas attack.
The UN has launched an investigation into the allegations, and UNRWA fired some staff after Israel provided the agency with information on the allegations.
The United States—UNRWA's largest donor, providing $300-$400 million annually—said it wants to see the results of that inquiry and corrective measures taken before it will consider resuming funding.
Even if the pause is lifted, only about $300,000 - what is left of already appropriated funds - would be released to UNRWA. Anything further would require congressional approval.
Bipartisan opposition in Congress to funding UNRWA makes it unlikely the United States will resume regular donations anytime soon, even as countries such as Sweden and Canada have said they will restart their contributions.
A supplemental funding bill in the US Congress that includes military aid to Israel and Ukraine and is supported by the Biden administration contains a provision that would block UNRWA from receiving funds if it becomes law.
US officials say they recognize "the critical role" UNRWA plays in distributing aid inside the densely-populated enclave that has been brought close to famine by Israel's assault over the past five months.
"We have to plan for the fact that Congress may make that pause permanent," State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters on Tuesday.
Washington has been looking at working with humanitarian partners on the ground, such as UNICEF and the World Food Program (WFP), to continue giving aid.
But officials are aware that UNRWA is hard to replace.
"There are other organizations that are now providing some distribution of aid inside Gaza, but that is primarily the role that UNRWA is equipped to play that no one else is due to their long standing work and their networks of distribution and their history inside Gaza," Miller said.
A few Senate Democrats, including Senator Chris Van Hollen, along with some progressive House members, have opposed an indefinite ban on funding to UNRWA.
But any new funding would need the support of at least some Republicans, who hold a majority in the House of Representatives. Many have expressed their opposition to UNRWA.
"UNRWA is a front, plain and simple," Republican lawmaker Brian Mast, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Accountability, said in a statement.
"It masquerades as a relief organization while building the infrastructure to support Hamas ... It is literally funneling American tax dollars to terrorism," Mast said.
UNRWA was established in 1949 by a UN General Assembly resolution after the war that followed Israel's founding, when 700,000 Palestinians fled or were driven from their homes.
Today, it directly employs 30,000 Palestinians, serving the civic and humanitarian needs of 5.9 million descendants of that refugee in the Gaza Strip, West Bank, and in vast camps in neighboring Arab countries.
In Gaza, UNRWA runs the enclave's schools, its primary healthcare clinics, and other social services and distributes humanitarian aid.
William Deere, director of UNRWA's Washington Representative Office, told Reuters that US support accounts for one-third of UNRWA's budget.
"That's going to be very hard to overcome," he said. Please remember that UNRWA is more than Gaza. It's health care, education, and social services. It's East Jerusalem, the West Bank, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon."
Fighters from Hamas, which administers Gaza, killed 1,200 people in the Oct. 7 attack and took 253 hostages, according to Israeli tallies, an assault that sparked one of the bloodiest wars in the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Israel's retaliatory military campaign on the densely populated enclave has killed more than 31,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza authorities, while infrastructure has been obliterated, and hundreds of thousands are now close to famine.
Reuters
Israel Gaza War Updates
Israel-Gaza War Updates
United States
UNRWA
Palestinian
Congress
Gaza
War
Funding
Donor
Next
International efforts to deliver aid to Gaza and condemnation of using hunger as 'war weapon'
Death of two Palestinians by Israeli forces in West Bank raid after deadly night
Previous
Related Articles
d-none hideMe
0
Middle East News
2024-01-29
Palestinians in Gaza consider UNRWA funding cuts as 'death sentence'
Middle East News
2024-01-29
Palestinians in Gaza consider UNRWA funding cuts as 'death sentence'
0
Israel-Gaza War Updates
2024-04-25
80,000 to 100,000 Palestinians from Gaza arrive in Egypt since start of war
Israel-Gaza War Updates
2024-04-25
80,000 to 100,000 Palestinians from Gaza arrive in Egypt since start of war
0
Lebanon News
2024-04-04
Bou Habib advocates for UN resolution 1701 implementation, calls for UNRWA funding and Palestinian justice
Lebanon News
2024-04-04
Bou Habib advocates for UN resolution 1701 implementation, calls for UNRWA funding and Palestinian justice
0
Israel-Gaza War Updates
2024-03-20
Saudi Arabia to boost UNRWA funding by $40 million for Gaza relief
Israel-Gaza War Updates
2024-03-20
Saudi Arabia to boost UNRWA funding by $40 million for Gaza relief
Recommended For You
d-none hideMe
0
Israel-Gaza War Updates
05:23
Hamas Health Ministry: Death toll rises to 34388 since October 7
Israel-Gaza War Updates
05:23
Hamas Health Ministry: Death toll rises to 34388 since October 7
0
Middle East News
03:14
Israeli soldiers kill two Palestinian gunmen in West Bank
Middle East News
03:14
Israeli soldiers kill two Palestinian gunmen in West Bank
0
Israel-Gaza War Updates
02:08
Cyprus resumes Gaza aid shipments after pause following aid worker killings: Reuters
Israel-Gaza War Updates
02:08
Cyprus resumes Gaza aid shipments after pause following aid worker killings: Reuters
0
World News
00:32
Yemen's Houthis confirm targeting Andromeda Star oil ship in Red Sea
World News
00:32
Yemen's Houthis confirm targeting Andromeda Star oil ship in Red Sea
Subscribe to our VOD
SUBSCRIBE
Our visitors readings
d-none hideMe
0
World News
2024-03-07
Russia reports neutralizing ISIS cell plotting attack on Moscow synagogue
World News
2024-03-07
Russia reports neutralizing ISIS cell plotting attack on Moscow synagogue
0
News Bulletin Reports
2023-11-16
Behind the Veil of Secrecy: The Israeli Skin Bank and Controversies Surrounding Organ Harvesting
News Bulletin Reports
2023-11-16
Behind the Veil of Secrecy: The Israeli Skin Bank and Controversies Surrounding Organ Harvesting
0
Lebanon News
2023-10-17
Ongoing rescue efforts by Civil Defense following Mansourieh building collapse: Here are the updates
Lebanon News
2023-10-17
Ongoing rescue efforts by Civil Defense following Mansourieh building collapse: Here are the updates
0
Middle East News
2024-03-29
Israeli strikes on Syria kill dozens
Middle East News
2024-03-29
Israeli strikes on Syria kill dozens
Videos
d-none hideMe
0
Lebanon News
2023-12-11
Breaking: Israel launches raid north of Litani on Monday (Video)
Lebanon News
2023-12-11
Breaking: Israel launches raid north of Litani on Monday (Video)
0
Lebanon News
2023-11-02
Exclusive to LBCI: U.S. State Department's Wooster Stresses Lebanon Must Avoid War, Sees Renewed Push for Two-State Solution
Lebanon News
2023-11-02
Exclusive to LBCI: U.S. State Department's Wooster Stresses Lebanon Must Avoid War, Sees Renewed Push for Two-State Solution
0
Lebanon News
2023-10-18
Protests Erupt near US Embassy in Awkar Against Israeli Attacks on Al-Maamadani Hospital in Gaza
Lebanon News
2023-10-18
Protests Erupt near US Embassy in Awkar Against Israeli Attacks on Al-Maamadani Hospital in Gaza
0
Lebanon News
2023-10-05
ATFL's Ambassador Edward Gabriel on Navigating Through Economic, Political, and Refugee Crises
Lebanon News
2023-10-05
ATFL's Ambassador Edward Gabriel on Navigating Through Economic, Political, and Refugee Crises
0
Sports News
2023-08-31
Amir Saoud Powers Lebanon to Victory Over Cote d'Ivoire: A Deep Dive Into The Numbers
Sports News
2023-08-31
Amir Saoud Powers Lebanon to Victory Over Cote d'Ivoire: A Deep Dive Into The Numbers
0
Sports News
2023-08-29
France Edges Past Lebanon in a Nail-Biter at FIBA World Cup 2023: A Statistical Deep Dive
Sports News
2023-08-29
France Edges Past Lebanon in a Nail-Biter at FIBA World Cup 2023: A Statistical Deep Dive
0
Lebanon News
2019-02-28
Pierre el-Daher, the man who defeated the Lebanese Forces
Lebanon News
2019-02-28
Pierre el-Daher, the man who defeated the Lebanese Forces
Most read
d-none hideMe
24 hours
7 days
Month
1
Middle East News
11:19
Al Jazeera, citing Yedioth Ahronoth: National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir's car overturns in a traffic accident near stabbing attack scene in Ramla
Middle East News
11:19
Al Jazeera, citing Yedioth Ahronoth: National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir's car overturns in a traffic accident near stabbing attack scene in Ramla
2
News Bulletin Reports
12:32
Pascal Sleiman's abduction and murder: Six suspects charged
News Bulletin Reports
12:32
Pascal Sleiman's abduction and murder: Six suspects charged
3
Lebanon News
01:35
Lebanon takes 'landmark step' towards justice for war crimes: HRW says
Lebanon News
01:35
Lebanon takes 'landmark step' towards justice for war crimes: HRW says
4
Lebanon News
00:11
Amos Hochstein in Israel: Seeking diplomatic solution to end cross-border firing, LBCI sources say
Lebanon News
00:11
Amos Hochstein in Israel: Seeking diplomatic solution to end cross-border firing, LBCI sources say
5
Lebanon News
11:29
Young Palestinian killed in Sidon
Lebanon News
11:29
Young Palestinian killed in Sidon
6
Israel-Gaza War Updates
00:21
Hamas reports receiving Israeli response to its ceasefire proposal
Israel-Gaza War Updates
00:21
Hamas reports receiving Israeli response to its ceasefire proposal
7
Lebanon News
03:33
Israeli strike in Lebanon's Beqaa region kills Lebanese militants
Lebanon News
03:33
Israeli strike in Lebanon's Beqaa region kills Lebanese militants
8
Lebanon News
05:50
Samir Geagea denounces Hezbollah's role in South Lebanon, says Lebanese army alone can secure the borders
Lebanon News
05:50
Samir Geagea denounces Hezbollah's role in South Lebanon, says Lebanese army alone can secure the borders
Download now the LBCI mobile app
To see the latest news, the latest daily programs in Lebanon and the world
Google Play
App Store
We use
cookies
We use
cookies
to make
your experience on this
website better.
Accept
Learn More