WASHINGTON, D.C. — Reps. Brian Mast (FL-21) and Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5) introduced a bipartisan bill to direct the Secretary of State to recover any federal funds that have been disbursed to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA). 

“For way too long, UNRWA has masqueraded as a relief organization, while in reality serving as an incubator for Palestinian terrorists. Intelligence reports indicate that as many as ten percent of UNRWA workers have direct links to Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihadists,” said Congressman Brian Mast. “It’s ludicrous that our hard-earned American tax dollars were going to fund this crap. The State Department needs to do everything it can to recoup this money.” 

UNRWA employees are accused of taking part in the October 7th attack on Israel — the deadliest attack on the Jewish people since the Holocaust. The federal government froze funding for UNRWA earlier this year, but the agency had already received $121 million in American tax dollars. In March, Congress passed legislation to defund UNRWA until 2025.

A copy of the bill can be found here.