The U.S., UNRWA, and the Holocaust

Brett Schaefer / March 15, 2011

The United States is the largest contributor to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA). According the Congressional Research Service, “Since UNRWA’s inception in 1950, the United States has provided the agency with nearly $4 billion in contributions. U.S. contributions to UNRWA have steadily increased over the past decade, with nearly $228 million thus far for [fiscal year] 2010.” This support is intended to help provide food, shelter, medical care, and education for the Palestinian refugees (and their decedents) fleeing the 1948 Arab–Israeli war.

Unfortunately, there is substantial evidence that UNRWA has become compromised and infiltrated by Hamas supporters and other Palestinian radicals who are using the body and, by extension, U.S. taxpayer dollars to advance their radical agenda. The most recent attempt by Hamas to twist UNRWA into serving its agenda is a demand that the organization cease teaching about the Holocaust in its classes: (more…)