"Republican Senator James Lankford of Oklahoma introduced a bill on Thursday that would demand the UN Relief and Works Agency change its definition of who qualifies as a Palestinian refugee or else permanently lose its annual congressional funding.
The senator's bill, titled the Palestinian Assistance Reform Act, would siphon UNRWA aid 'to other entities providing assistance to Palestinians living in the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon,' unless the organization reforms, the senator said.
Lankford dropped his bill days after the Trump administration announced it would unilaterally end all aid to UNRWA, citing similar reasons.
But an amendment to the typical congressional appropriations model for UNRWA would codify Trump's new policy long after he leaves office, making Lankford's legislation, if it were to pass, far more weighty and permanent than Trump's executive action..."