24 Senators Demand Supplemental Bill Ban U.S. Aid to UNRWA Given Hamas Ties
Washington, D.C.--U.S. Senator Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) joined Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Pete Ricketts (R-Nebraska), Tim Scott (R-South Carolina) and 20 additional Republican Senators to demand the national security supplemental bill include “an immediate and permanent prohibition” of U.S. aid to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).
The letter to Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell follows last week’s revelation that 12 UNRWA staff were directly involved in the October 7 attack on Israel and Wall Street Journal reporting that around 10 percent of UNRWA’s staff have ties to Islamic militant groups.
“Let us be crystal clear: last week’s revelation that UNRWA staff members played a part in the October 7 attacks is not an example of a few bad apples acting out of turn,” the senators wrote. “Instead, it is emblematic of an organization where no investigation or subsequent corrective measures will ever be enough to cure the rot that is so clearly endemic to its mission.”
“The United States must permanently stop all contributions to UNRWA,” the senators closed. “Senate Republicans have introduced several bills this Congress to do just that, including the UNRWA Accountability and Transparency Act. As we consider ways to provide necessary assistance to Israel in its fight against Hamas terrorists, we request that any supplemental package include an immediate and permanent prohibition against U.S. contributions to UNRWA.”
Other signatories include Senators Bill Cassidy (R-Louisiana), Ted Budd (R-North Carolina), John Barrasso (R-Wyoming), Thom Tillis (R-North Carolina), Markwayne Mullin (R-Oklahoma), John Hoeven (R-North Dakota), Steve Daines (R-Montana), Marco Rubio (R-Florida), Tommy Tuberville (R-Alabama), Kevin Cramer (R-North Dakota), Mitt Romney (R-Utah), Mike Braun (R-Indiana), Deb Fischer (R-Nebraska), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Katie Boyd Britt (R-Alabama), Eric Schmitt (R-Missouri), John Kennedy (R-Louisiana), Ron Johnson (R-Wisconsin), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) and Susan Collins (R-Maine).
A copy of the letter can be found here.
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