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WASHINGTON — Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) is leading a group of two dozen Republican lawmakers urging President Trump to “fully dismantle UNRWA” and eliminate it from the United Nations’ budget, The Post can reveal.
Cotton and the 24 GOP senators wrote a letter to the president Monday highlighting recent findings from a federal watchdog about UN Relief and Works Agency employees who participated with Hamas in the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre in Israel or were otherwise affiliated with the terror group.
“Any aid organization in Gaza or otherwise must be demonstrably free of ties to terrorism and committed to transparency, accountability, and peace,” the Republicans wrote.
“We must ensure the failed system doesn’t continue reinforcing the conditions that have fueled terrorism for generations. The time to act is now.”
Trump signed an executive order in February 2025 stopping US funding to UNRWA, which had received up to $1.5 billion during the Biden administration.
Congressional appropriators are also proposing a total UN funding cut of $1.8 billion this year, in addition to nixing American tax dollars from going to any group that doesn’t cooperate with a federal watchdog’s investigation of UNRWA.
But the US is still funding UNRWA indirectly by giving taxpayer dollars to the UN, which sends along roughly $70 million from its annual budget to the Palestinian aid agency. Hundreds of millions of dollars more are pledged individually by nations.
The UN has also requested billions of dollars more this year as part of a $71.4 billion package for recovery and reconstruction in the Gaza Strip. US taxpayer funding to the UN agency has been flagged for being at risk of being diverted to terror groups, past federal watchdog findings show.
The Post first reported on the US Agency for International Development Office of Inspector General “expanding” an investigation into more than 100 UNRWA employees’ possible terror ties.
USAID OIG has already submitted the names of 21 UNRWA staff for suspension or debarment from receiving further US taxpayer money — after uncovering school principals, teachers and social workers with the UN agency who facilitated or participated in the Hamas attack.
The unnamed staffers were “alleged to have participated in the holding of civilian hostages kidnapped from Israel and/or the terrorist activities in Israel on October 7, 2023,” an April 30 investigative summary from the IG’s office stated.
The DOJ and FBI have been probing allegations that UNRWA employees assisted Hamas as well, according to two sources familiar with the matter.
The Republicans cited the findings in their letter, arguing further that UNRWA facilities had been used to stockpile weapons for the terror group and hide its tunnel infrastructure.
Co-signers of the letter include Sens. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), Dave McCormick (R-Pa.), Tim Scott (R-SC), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), John Curtis (R-Utah), John Hoeven (R-ND), Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Jim Banks (R-Ind.), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Mike Rounds (R-SD), Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Katie Britt (R-Ala.), Ted Budd (R-NC), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Tim Sheehy (R-Mont.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Senate Republican conference chairman John Barrasso (R-Wyo.).
The Post reached out to the White House for comment. Reps for UNRWA did not respond to a request for comment.
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