Tell Congress to oppose these reckless Trump Administration actions!
Jan 2018 Alert: UNRWA & Jerusalem
Speak out against aid cuts to Palestinians  
and a dangerous decision on Jerusalem
Last month, President Trump announced that
the U.S. recognizes Jerusalem as Israel's capital and will begin plans to move the U.S. Embassy there.  
 
This action belies the U.S. role as an "honest broker" for a just peace.
  
Responding to Pres. Trump's announcement, 15 U.S. Christian organizations have again sent their Feb. 2017 briefing paper to members of Congress: "Toward Peace, Justice, and Equality in Israel and Palestine."    
    
The paper states: "T o address this untenable situation, U.S. policymakers should make clear their commitment to ensuring fundamental human rights."  See the full briefing paper.
 
Palestinian leaders have rejected the U.S. decisions on Jerusalem and have said that the U.S. can no longer help to broker negotiations with Israel.
 
So Trump threatened to cut funding to UNRWA, the UN agency that helps millions of Palestinian refugees.

And now the Trump administration has done just that:
The US State Department has announced that only $60 million of $125 million in US funding for UNRWA would be released, with conditions placed on any further funding.   

These actions by the Trump Administration undermine prospects for peace, threaten security for both Israelis and Palestinians, and will make life even harder for Palestinians. 
 
 
U.S. support for UNRWA amounts to about one-third of the agency's annual budget. Ending this assistance would have disastrous consequences for the refugees who depend on it.
 
UNRWA assistance reaches roughly five million Palestinian refugees living in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon.  
 
Services include education, health care, camp infrastructure and improvement, and emergency assistance, including in times of armed conflict.  UNRWA warns that half a million Palestinian children will suffer if these services are curtailed.  

The U.S. announcement on Jerusalem reveals blatant disregard for the rights and needs of the Palestinian people.  
 
Cutting U.S. funding to UNRWA is another dangerous step and could create a crisis for millions of refugees. 
 
 
You will review the prepared message, which asks Congress to:
 
SUPPORT constructive political action that includes a fair resolution on such issues as the status of Jerusalem and the rights of Palestinian refugees.  
         
ADVOCATE for reversal of the U.S. administration's decisions on Jerusalem and the US embassy. 
 
REJECT any cuts to U.S. funding for UNRWA.  
 

This month, Palestine Portal features the Third Thursday action of AFSC, American Friends Service Committee - so you will be taken to their page to contact Congress.

 
On Palestine Portal:  
Advocacy for Jerusalem
 
Ecumenical, denominational, and secular activist organizations in the U.S. and globally have come out immediately and strongly against this action.  

Palestine Portal has the statements, open letters, and action alerts from church bodies and prominent organizations about this unprecedented and dangerous action on Jerusalem. 

We also have resources that can help in understanding the history and current status of Jerusalem, which is - as Israeli peace activist Daniel Seidemann has said -  "ground zero" of the Israel-Palestine issue. 

 
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