Former Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, expressed concern about the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), criticizing it for being “riddled with waste, fraud, and concerns of support to terrorism.” This criticism stems from the United States’ long history of providing funding to UNRWA, totaling over $7.1 billion since the agency’s establishment in 1950. However, after allegations surfaced that 12 UNRWA employees had been involved in an attack on Israel by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, the Biden administration temporarily paused unobligated U.S. funding to the agency.
The majority of Gaza’s 2.1 million population has relied on humanitarian assistance for years, with UNRWA established in 1949 to provide schooling, primary health care, and aid to registered Palestinian refugees across the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria. An Israeli document raised allegations against 12 UNRWA workers involved in the Oct. 7 attack, with the U.S. Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, calling it “highly credible.” UNRWA subsequently terminated the contracts of the accused staffers and undertook an investigation.
In response to the allegations, multiple countries, including the United States, paused their funding to the aid agency. The impact of this freezing of funds has raised concern that the agency may be forced to cease its operations by the end of February. This has led to calls by UNRWA’s head, Philippe Lazzaini, for countries to resume funding to the aid agency.
While some argue UNRWA’s assistance is essential, it has also faced criticism and claims of a flawed business model, inefficiency, and concerns over neutrality and potential support for terrorism. Despite these concerns, the Biden administration resumed the funding to UNRWA in April 2021, pointing to the possibility of steering the organization in a more productive direction.