WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Representative Michael McCaul (R-Texas), lead Republican of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, today released the following statement on the Biden Administration’s decision to restart assistance to the Palestinians:
“Resuming assistance to the West Bank and Gaza without concessions from the Palestinian Authority (PA) undermines U.S. interests. The PA is spending millions annually to compensate terrorists while the international community pays for the well-being of the Palestinian people. A recent Government Accountability Office report rightly calls for increased oversight of Palestinian assistance to ensure compliance with anti-terrorism policies. The Biden Administration should use all available leverage to secure behavior changes from the PA, including ending terror payments. We will continue to scrutinize every proposed program to ensure the administration’s actions are in lockstep with the Taylor Force Act and in compliance with all laws governing assistance to the Palestinians.
“Additionally, we are disappointed that the Biden Administration has decided to resume funding for UNRWA without securing any reforms from the organization”
###