Republicans push back against Biden moves to fund controversial UN Palestinian refugee agency

Republicans are pushing back against the Biden administration’s moves to fund a controversial U.N. Palestinian refugee agency which has been dogged with accusations of anti-Israel bias -- and one that the Trump administration stopped funding.

"We are concerned that this administration’s decision to resume U.S. assistance to UNRWA was made in haste, without any actionable attempt to secure much-needed and meaningful reforms of the agency," the lawmakers wrote. "Beyond its inflated and duplicative structure, there are serious concerns about the impartiality of UNRWA. Over the years the agency has employed individuals affiliated with Hamas, a U.S. designated terrorist organization. UNRWA schools have been used to store Hamas weapons," the senators continued. "Additionally, there have been numerous cases of UNRWA textbooks including material that is anti-Semitic, such as encouraging the destruction of the state of Israel and supporting martyrdom and/or violent jihad."