Hawkish Democrat Quietly Seeking To Extend U.S. Ban On U.N. Aid To Palestinians

One of the most aggressively pro-Israel Democrats in Congress is quietly trying to extend a yearlong ban on U.S. funding for the United Nations agency helping Palestinians ― circulating a message telling fellow members of Congress that they “have a shared responsibility to ensure that U.S. humanitarian assistance is used to foster an open and safe society and not propagate terrorism and further division.”

The previously unreportedgambit that hawkish Rep. Josh Gottheimer (N.J.) launched on Tuesday underscores how determined some hard-line Israel advocates remain to force a permanent shift in U.S. policy. Washington has historically been the biggest donor to the agency, the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), and for the next 11 months at least, there is no prospect of American funds going to UNRWA because of the prohibition that legislators passed in a government spending bill last month after Israel in January accused UNRWA staffers of participating in the Oct. 7 attack on Israel that was led by the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

The Biden administration had already halted American support to UNRWA, which amounted to up to $400 million annually, before the congressional vote over Israel’s allegations. Gottheimer wants to codify a ban on supporting UNRWA work in Gaza in legislation that is intended to fund the State Department through the 2025 fiscal year.

Citing a lack of evidence for Israel’s claims that UNRWA is responsible for terrorism and the worsening humanitarian conditions for Palestinians amid the U.S.-backed Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip, several top donors have recently resumed their donations to the agency, including Japan, France, Australia, Canada,