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Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) National President Morton A. Klein, ZOA Director of Research and Special Projects Liz Berney, Esq. and ZOA Director of Government Relations Dan Pollak released the following statement:
The ZOA praises sponsors Senator James Risch (R-ID), Representative Chip Roy (R-TX) and 41 Republican cosponsors for reintroducing companion bills S.431 (Feb. 15, 2023) and H.R.1022 (Feb. 17, 2023). (See Text; Senate cosponsors; and House cosponsors.) The bills call for, inter alia: withholding United States contributions to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) unless UNRWA meets anti-terror and related conditions; implementing a plan for resettling “Palestine refugees” outside Israel and phasing out UNRWA; and ending the improper counting of descendants to expand and perpetuate “Palestine refugee” status ad infinitum.
UNRWA is the corrupt, terror-fomenting, bloated, Hamas-infested arm of the United Nations that deals with alleged “Palestine refugees.” UNRWA schools and textbooks teach Arab children to aspire to become “martyrs” by murdering Jews. UNRWA facilities have hidden Hamas weapons and terror tunnel entrances.
Conditioning Funding on UNRWA Ending Terror Incitement and Terror Ties: The Risch/Roy bills are well-designed to require UNRWA to completely overhaul itself and eliminate UNRWA’s terror ties and incitement. This is much-needed to curb the violence that UNRWA foments by teaching hatred of Jews, Israel and Americans in its schools and by storing weapons.
The bills would end U.S. funding of UNRWA until the U.S. Secretary of State submits a written certification that, among other conditions, no UNRWA official, employee, affiliate, etc. (i) “has propagated or disseminated anti-American, anti-Israel, or antisemitic rhetoric, incitement, or propaganda” (including promoting BDS, describing Israelis as “occupiers”; calling for Israel’s destruction; calling for a “right of return” – which would overrun Israel; advocating terrorist activity, violence, jihad and martyrdom; denying the Jewish people’s historic connection to Israel; and calling for violence against Americans); (ii) “is a member of, is affiliated with, or has any ties to a foreign terrorist organization, including Hamas and Hezbollah”; or (iii) “has advocated, planned, sponsored, or engaged in any terrorist activity.”
This Legislation Urgently Needs to Be Adopted Because Pres. Biden Resumed Funding to UNRWA: Former President Trump rightfully cut and then ended sending U.S. funds to UNRWA. (See “Morton Klein: Trump Wisely Ends U.S. Funding to UNRWA,” Breitbart, Sept. 6, 2018; and “Trump Gets UNRWA Right,” by Elliott Abrams, Council for Foreign Relations, Jan. 17, 2018.) Unfortunately, in April 2021, soon after taking office, President Biden resumed funding UNRWA. Shortly afterwards, in May 2021, Hamas launched 4,600 rockets at Israel, killing Israeli civilians (and Gazan civilians with misfired rockets). ZOA believes that this was not coincidental.
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