WASHINGTON, D.C., USA โ A recent report by the U.S. government agency USAIDโs watchdog office shows that the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) is compromised by Hamas terrorists who have deeply entrenched themselves within the U.N. entity founded more than 75 years ago.
Why didnโt this make prominent headlines in the United States? In this small space, an attempt will be made to rectify that.
Whatโs more, within mere days of the USAID announcement, UNRWA USAโthe American nonprofit that supports the U.N. organization with money, lobbying, and other direct assistanceโconnected itself to an artist with a long history of creating works that exhibit strong endorsement of anti-Israel violence.
A USAID press statement issued on June 5 announced that it had โreferred for suspension/debarment consideration the names of 101 current or former staff at the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) for participation in the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks and/or affiliation with the military wing (Al-Qassam Brigades) of Hamas.โ
The USAID Office of Inspector General (USAID OIG) had clearly done remarkable work here and stated on June 5 that it has made it an โinvestigative priority to ensure that U.S.-funded humanitarian assistance in Gaza does not fall into the hands of Hamas.โ
Additionally, the USAID OIG passed information to the U.S. State Department, as well as to the U.S. Justice Department, for potential criminal prosecution.
While it may be very hard to track and manage humanitarian aid in conflict zones, monitoring what nonprofit groups in the United States do and say should be far easier.
UNRWA USA, the not-for-profit fundraising outfit, was founded in 2005, and its work should raise many questions.
It is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit and has begun raising money through the sale of work from a propagandist who has a long history of creating art that supports anti-Israel violence.
The UNRWA USA National Committeeโs website has an extensive appeal for donations featuring a shirt designed by the radical Bint Bandora. The groupโs social-media posts have also touted Bandora as an โartist,โ and its website has linked to Bandoraโs Instagram account.
On Instagram and elsewhere where Bandora displays her efforts, her artwork features the words โHomosexual Intifada.โ Other pieces include a map of Palestine that eliminates the State of Israel, multiple graphics proclaiming โResistance Until Reclamation,โ and calls for โTotal Liberation.โ One particularly alarming illustration features the word โResistanceโ alongside a masked terrorist brandishing a weapon.
Does UNRWA USA agree with such endorsements of violence? Does UNRWA?
The UNRWA USA National Committee raises tens of millions of dollars each year. Where does the money go?
Also, earlier this month, a senior UNRWA USA employee was featured on the groupโs official X account in a tweet using the weaponized languageย Nakba, an Arabic term that refers to the establishment of the modern-day State of Israel as a โcatastropheโ or โdisaster.โ This is the exact type of anti-Israel rhetoric that should be seen as incitement to violence.
Just as disturbing is that on May 28, the organization tweeted: โCall your representatives. Demand pressure to lift the blockade.โ
The post promoted Capitol Hill lobbying in support of the illegal Gaza flotilla that tried to deliberately challenge a lawful and necessary Israeli maritime blockade designed to protect Israeli civilians. The tweet linked to a UNRWA USA website where visitors were told to โUrge your elected officials to co-sponsor the UNRWA Funding Emergency Restoration Act.โ
Back in October 2024, the Knesset passed two new laws that effectively mean that UNRWA has been barred from Israel and from having contact with Israeli officials.
Why did Israel make such moves? Security. At the time, Israel was accusing 12 UNRWA personnel of being involved in the Oct. 7 terrorist invasion. Additionally, Israel charged that hundreds of UNRWA staffers were members of terrorist organizations and that these people facilitated the infiltration of Hamas into UNRWA and the facilities it ran.
UNRWAโs failures come as little surprise to those who have looked at its history.
Harris Schoenbergโs highly praised 1989 book A Mandate for Terror: The United Nations and the PLO revealed that UNRWA was never focused on resettling refugees as it should have been. Similar U.N.-led efforts were focused on the resettlement of refugees in other parts of the world. It is worthwhile at this point to mention that the United Nations made zero effort to aid Israel in its resettlement of Jews who fled Arab countries.
Schoenberg wrote that โduring Israelโs 1982 strike against the PLO in Lebanon (…) the Israel Defense Forces revealed that UNRWA schools were used as terrorist bases (…) and arms depots.โ Thereโs much more in A Mandate for Terror that makes it an essential book for understanding UNRWA.
Israel has been fighting Hamas and Hezbollah every day since Oct. 7. Israel fought the PLO in Lebanon in 1982. The common thread is the help the terrorists receive from UNRWA. UNRWA is directly supported by UNRWA USA.
Talking about aย Nakbaย that never happened and collaborating with an illustrator who glorifies terrorism in her work should raise deep concerns about the other things UNRWA USA is doing that are not out in the open. It is past time to shine a spotlight on UNRWA USAโs activities.
Moshe Phillipsย isย national chairmanย ofย Americans For A Safeย Israel, AFSI (www.AFSI.org), a leading pro-Israelย advocacy andย educationย organization.
