Republicans threaten showdown over UN funding in Gaza
Sens. Marco Rubio and Mark Kirk say they’re “dumbfounded” by Secretary of State John Kerry’s $156 million pledge to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees.
![Senator Rubio speaks with Senator McCain as U.S. Secretary of State Kerry testifies during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on "U.S. Strategy to Defeat the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant" on Capitol Hill Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) speaks with Senator John McCain (R-AZ) as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry testifies during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on "U.S. Strategy to Defeat the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant" on Capitol Hill in Washington September 17, 2014. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT) - RTR46NOK](/sites/default/files/styles/article_hero_medium/public/almpics/2014/10/RTR46NOK.jpg/RTR46NOK.jpg?h=f7822858&itok=eRdcuHQd)
Two hawkish senators on Oct. 22 slammed Secretary of State John Kerry’s $156 million pledge to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, foreshadowing a showdown over funding when Congress returns after the midterm elections.
The UN Refugee and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) has long been in Republicans’ cross-hairs, in part because it recognizes 5 million descendants of the Palestinians expelled from their lands in 1948 as refugees. During this summer’s fighting in Gaza, the agency caused a bipartisan uproar when it turned over to the local authorities Hamas rockets that it had discovered stored at three of its schools.