Speaker's Advisor:

Termination of UNRWA's Mission Part of Trump's Crime against Palestinians

Rasa - Advisor to the Iranian Parliament Speaker Hossein Amir Abdollahian strongly blasted the decision to put an end to the mission of the UN Palestinian Refugee Agency (UNRWA), and said that it served the interests of the US and Israel.

News ID: 439374

Date: 03 September 2018 - 21:27

RNA - "The decision by the Trump administration to no longer commit funding the UN Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA) is a crime against the oppressed Palestinian nation," Amir Abdollahian, also secretary general of the International Conference in Support of the Palestinian Intifada.

He warned against the consequences of the US government's support for Israel's crimes against 5 million Palestinian refugees, and said that the United States must accept the consequences of its inhuman actions.

"The United States cannot violate the Palestinian refugees’ right to return their lands, Amir Abdollahian said, adding that the Palestinian people will be resisting and standing up to their legitimate rights.

The administration of US President Donald Trump has decided to cancel all US funding to the United Nations aid program for Palestinian refugees, part of a policy to impose maximum pressure on the Palestinians to satisfy Israeli interests and Zionist constituencies in the US.

In an announcement to be made within the next several weeks, the Trump administration plans to express its disapproval of the way the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) spends the funds on Palestinian refugees, The Washington Post reported Thursday, citing officials familiar with the decision.

According to Fars News Agancy, the administration also plans to call for a sharp reduction in the number of Palestinians recognized as refugees, dropping it from about 5 million, including descendants, to fewer than a tenth of that number, or those still alive from when the agency was created seven decades ago, the newspaper reported.

Many foreign policy and security experts, including in Israel, say that slashing UNRWA’s budget, amid a call to “de-register” refugees, would worsen an already disastrous humanitarian situation, especially in Gaza.

The Trump administration has already announced a steady stream of cuts in aid for Palestinians. The US State Department announced in January that would withhold $65 million of a $125 million aid installment to UNRWA.

The State Department also announced last week that Washington has canceled over $200 million in funds for the Palestinian Authority, leading Palestinian officials to denounce the move as “blackmail.”

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