A.America’s President Joe Biden has announced that he will resume payments to the UN Aid for Palestinian Refugees in the Middle East (UNRWA). Speaking to journalists on Wednesday, the president said Washington would pay back the $ 150 million contribution that his predecessor Donald Trump stopped in 2018. With the move, Biden angered the government in Tehran.
The US State Department said Washington would provide an additional $ 75 million in economic and development aid for the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip and $ 10 million in peacekeeping. The aid is “a means to move forward on the way to a negotiated two-state solution,” said Foreign Minister Antony Blinken.
Criticism from Israel
Israel denounced American support for the UN relief agency on Wednesday. “We believe that this UN facility for so-called ‘refugees’ should not exist in its current form,” said Israeli Ambassador to the United States, Gilad Erdan. According to Israel, pupils in schools supported by the aid agency are incited against the Jewish state.
On the Palestinian side, Prime Minister Mohammed Shtajjeh welcomed the resumption of aid. “We look forward not only to the resumption of financial aid, but also to the resumption of political relations with the United States.” This would enable the Palestinian people “to exercise their legitimate right to establish an independent state with Jerusalem as its capital meet, ”said Shtajjeh.
Federal Foreign Minister Heiko Maas (SPD) said on Wednesday that he was pleased with the announcement by the American government. “From my point of view, it sends the right signal: we are not leaving the people in the region alone,” emphasized Maas. The work of UNRWA is “indispensable” because it improves future prospects for those affected and creates concrete perspectives. Germany has supported UNRWA for years.
The United States was UNRWA’s largest donor long before Trump withdrew support. The UN relief agency for Palestinian refugees cares for the approximately five million registered refugees who were displaced or fled in connection with the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948. Washington had drastically cut its payments to the aid agency in early 2018. As a result, the relief organization ran into difficulties in order to continue to finance the operation of hundreds of schools.
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source https://pledgetimes.com/palestinians-united-states-resumes-payments-to-un-aid/
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