How Much Aid Money Goes To Israel

The United States is past far the largest donor of financial assistance to the Palestinians, with this assistance touching nearly every aspect of life in the Palestinian Authority. But United states President Donald Trump threatened on Tuesday to end this aid to the Palestinians, angered past Ramallah'due south refusal to cooperate with the US's efforts to jump-start Israeli-Palestinian peace talks later on he alleged Jerusalem the capital of Israel in December.

The Palestinians desire East Jerusalem to exist the upper-case letter of their future state.

Trump tweeted on Tuesday that Washington was paying the PA hundreds of millions of dollars a year "for nil," and complained that the Us received "no appreciation or respect" in return.

Earlier on Tuesday, US Ambassador to the United nations Nikki Haley threatened to cut off funding to the Un's Palestinian refugee agency, UNRWA, if the Palestinians refused to appoint in peace negotiations.

Should the threats of the president and Haley come to fruition, what kind of impact could this have on the Palestinians?

Three types of US assistance to the Palestinians

According to the US Consulate in Jerusalem's website, the United states of america has been the largest donor of help to the Palestinians since the signing of the Oslo Accords in 1994. This help has totaled around $600 million annually in recent years, and can be roughly divided into iii categories.

The get-go is USAID, the conduit past which the State Section provides aid to countries across the earth. The second is the economical back up for police force and order in the Palestinian Authority. These two categories were possibly the assistance that Trump had in mind in his tweet, though the president did non specify. The third is the US support for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, or UNRWA, as addressed by Haley.

Palestinian security forces stand guard outside a hospital where a senior Hamas security chief was treated after being wounded in a car bomb. (AFP/Mohammed Abed)

Over 5 billion in USAID since 1994

Since 1994, Washington has provided the Palestinians with more than $v.ii billion through USAID. This coin is used for developing and sustaining the Palestinian Authorisation, including support for debt relief (such as helping to pay the medical debts of Palestinians in Israeli or other foreign hospitals), sanitation, economical development in the public and private sectors, infrastructure evolution, education, governance, health and essential humanitarian assistance to the Gaza Strip.

The USAID coin is also a lifeline for dozens of NGOs that work in the Palestinian territories on the grassroots level to back up conflict mitigation and instill values of non-violence and peace-seeking.

Split from this USAID coin, which in 2016 equaled $290 million, the Usa also gives a large sum every twelvemonth to back up law and gild.

This support, for which nigh $55 million was approaching in 2016, includes training and supplying equipment to the PA security forces and the police strength, fire-eater training, rehabilitating courtrooms and training judges as well as lawyers.

Israel sometimes works together with Palestinian security forces in lodge to foil terror plots confronting Israeli or Palestinian citizens.

US aid already threatened by Congress

Long before Trump thought about cut help to the Palestinians over their refusal to work with his administration in the peace procedure, Congress was already working to freeze assistance to the Palestinians until the PA discontinues its practice of paying monthly stipends to the families of terrorists who kill Israelis.

Taylor Force, murdered in Israel by a Palestinian terrorist in March 2016, gave his proper name to the Taylor Force Human activity, legislation proposing to halt The states aid to the Palestinian Authority until the latter stops paying stipends to terrorists and their families. (Facebook)

This legislation, known as the Taylor Force Human activity, after a former United states of america ground forces officeholder who was stabbed to expiry past a Palestinian assailant while visiting Tel Aviv in March 2016, was passed in early December by the United states Business firm of Representatives after the legislation went through a number of rounds of revision.

The legislation now needs to be passed by the Senate.

In its 2017 upkeep, Ramallah allocated nearly $345 one thousand thousand for the contentious stipends. In total, it expected $693 million in foreign assistance for the 2017 financial twelvemonth.

While Us assistance, which is largely not transferred into the coffers of the PA directly merely rather paid out to third parties, cannot be used for paying the families of terrorists, many contend the assistance simply frees upward other funds in the Palestinian leadership'south upkeep to pay the stipends.

Dorsum in July, a White House official told The Times of State of israel the Trump administration "agrees with the high-level goals of the Taylor Force Deed."

UNRWA 'indispensable' to Palestinians

The states assistance to UNRWA in recent years has been far greater than that contributed by any other country, and surpasses the hundreds of millions given to the Palestinians through USAID.

UNRWA oft operates in the poorest Palestinian neighborhoods and refugee camps, providing didactics to hundreds of thousands of students.

The organization also provides essential humanitarian services, including running health clinics and women's centers.

Palestinian children at a school in the Gaza Strip city of Rafah. (Abed Rahim Khatib/Flash90)

In 2016, the Us pledged $355 meg toward UNRWA's operations. The 2nd highest donor was the EU, pledging $160 million.

A big bulk of UNWRA's piece of work takes place in Palestinian refugee camps outside of the Palestinian territories, including in Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.

The states donations to UNRWA accept been failing in contempo years. In 2015, the US gave $380.5 one thousand thousand to UNRWA and in 2014 gave $408 1000000 to the Un refugee system.

According to UNRWA, the agency educates half a 1000000 children in over 700 schools across the Middle Eastward (270,00 of them in Gaza). The agency's doctors see 11 million patients in nearly 150 primary wellness clinics annually. UNRWA also conducts vocational training, preparing 9,000 immature people for job markets every yr, according to the agency.

UNRWA, according to the agency, also assists more than than 40,000 refugees with disabilities and runs recreational centers for 200,000 refugee youth and children. The agency employs over thirty,000 education staff, doctors, nurses, social workers, sanitation laborers and engineers.

Chris Gunness, the spokesperson for UNRWA, told The Times of State of israel on Wednesday, "Nosotros have no indication from the U.s.a. administration of any intention to change funding for UNRWA."

"UNRWA'southward contribution to homo development — notably through education and healthcare services — is described as indispensable to the nobility of Palestinian refugees and the stability of the region," he added.

Palestinians receive aid at a United Nations distribution center (UNRWA) in the Rafah refugee army camp, southern Gaza Strip on July 31, 2014 (Abed Rahim Khatib/Flash90)

Peter Lerner, a recently retired spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces, argued that cutting funding to UNRWA would just hurt the weakest in Palestinian society, leading to more terror and extremism.

"There are many bug with UNRWA, only cutting financial support to the organization hurts the weakest members of Palestinian society and is unlikely to bring the Palestinian Say-so to the tabular array," Lerner wrote on his Twitter account.

"The refugee camps take historically been hotbeds for terrorist activities, weakening this population volition only pb to more extremism and violence. This will non contribute to security or stability in the region," he concluded.

'Time has come to dismantle UNRWA'

Haley mentioned the possibility of cutting funding to UNRWA in an impromptu response Tuesday to a question from a Canadian journalist, who asked whether the US would retain its current level of funding for the Un bureau in light of a not-binding United nations Full general Associates resolution last month condemning the US recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

"[Trump] doesn't want to give any additional funding until the Palestinians agree to come up back to the negotiation table, and what nosotros saw with the resolution was not helpful to the state of affairs," Haley said.

Haley seemed to exist arguing that cutting UNRWA funding was aimed at dissuading the Un from foiling the The states'southward strategy for an Israeli-Palestinian peace plan.

Prime number Government minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that in his first meeting with Haley in June 2016, he asked her to "re-examine UNRWA's continued being."

In this 1948 photo from the UNRWA archive, Palestinian refugees stand outside their tent in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip. (AP/UNRWA Photo Archives)

UNRWA was created in 1949 in the wake of Israel's State of war of Independence.

Netanyahu, in statements last year to his cabinet, defendant the organization of inciting against State of israel while doing goose egg to help the plight of Palestinian refugees. He asked why they needed a specific body, when the Un High Commission for Refugees has helped tens of millions of displaced persons since Globe State of war II.

"The time has come to dismantle UNRWA and accept its parts be integrated into the United nations Loftier Commission for Refugees," he said.

UNRWA has long been the target of heavy criticism for alleged anti-Israel rhetoric promoted at its schools and for turning a blind middle to terrorist activities taken place at its premises, including the storing of rockets and hosting of tunnels belonging to the Hamas terror group.

UNRWA has condemned the use of its premises by Hamas for armed services purposes.

Palestinian children attend a class at the UNRWA elementary school in the Shati refugee camp in Gaza City, in April 2013. (AP/Hatem Moussa)

Additionally, Israel has long claimed that some of UNRWA'south Palestinian employees support terrorist activities and utilize hate-speech online.

An official told The Times of Israel on Tuesday that the White House was indeed reconsidering the effectiveness of the UN agency.

"Nosotros proceed to review the bear upon and effectiveness of UNRWA'south aid programs. This is prudent, and indeed, it is our duty to the American taxpayer," the official said.

However, the official also praised UNRWA.

The US has "long supported UNRWA for its important and life-saving humanitarian work, and recognizes its role as a stabilizing force and a counterweight to fierce extremism, which is essential for stability in the Heart East region," the official said.

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.

Source: https://www.timesofisrael.com/how-much-aid-does-the-us-give-palestinians-and-whats-it-for/

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