Foreign Affairs Committee Republicans pass measure to claw back UNRWA funding with no support from Democrats

"The House Foreign Affairs Committee on Thursday split along party lines on a bill seeking to rescind U.S. funding previously provided to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency before the administration and Congress froze funding to the U.N. body earlier this year.

All but four Democrats on the committee also opposed a bill penalizing the U.N. for granting the Palestinians enhanced status.

The UNRWA bill, led by Reps. Brian Mast (R-FL), Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) and Chris Smith (R-NJ), would instruct the secretary of state to seek to rescind any funds previously allocated to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency — before funding to the agency was frozen — that have not yet been utilized by UNRWA.

Mast suggested during the committee meeting that the administration had deliberately waited to halt funding to UNRWA in January until after it had distributed an additional tranche of funds to the agency, adding that the problems with the U.N. agency continue — pointing to a recent IDF raid on an UNRWA facility in Gaza City allegedly being used by Hamas.

‘UNRWA is an entity that has been a part of supporting hatred against Jews, against Israel, a part of facilitating attacks, holding hostages,’ Mast said, outlining UNRWA’s history of ties to Hamas and promotion of antisemitism in its schools...

Four Democrats, Reps. Kathy Manning (D-NC), Greg Stanton (D-AZ), Jim Costa (D-CA) and Brad Schneider (D-IL), all pro-Israel moderates, voted for the other U.N. funding bill, which passed the committee 28-18.

Rep. Jim Baird (R-IN), the bill’s lead sponsor, said it seeks to ‘close loopholes and ensure that the American taxpayer dollars are not funneled through UN entities that are enabling abuses’ by the Palestinian Authority.

Existing U.S. law would defund the U.N. or any agency thereof that recognizes the Palestine Liberation Organization as a member state. This provision didn’t apply to the U.N.’s recent move to grant the Palestinians higher status and privileges closer to those of a state.

The new legislation would revise existing law to take effect if the PLO or PA gain ‘any status, rights, or privileges beyond observer status.’ If passed, it would likely trigger an immediate suspension of U.S. support for the U.N. General Assembly.

Baird asserted that the PA has attempted to ‘weaponize’ and ‘manipulate the system for its own gain.’...

Manning, who supported the bill, said she had concerns about its impact but also criticized the Palestinians’ efforts to ‘make an end run around the peace process,’ which she said were being ‘encouraged and supported’ by the U.N., effectively incentivizing the Palestinians to eschew negotiations and rewarding them for their ‘refusal to make tough compromises and acknowledge’ Israel’s right to exist.

The committee approved by voice vote a bill adding sanctions on the Popular Resistance Committees, another Palestinian terrorist group operating in Gaza involved in the Oct. 7 attack, and a resolution condemning the United Nations for placing the Israeli Defense Forces on a list of child rights abusers.

Supporters of the latter resolution on both sides of the aisle said that the report reflected U.N. bias against Israel, declared Israel equivalent to terrorist groups and rogue states and ignored Israel’s cooperation with the U.N. probe and its recommendations..."