Just the Facts: U.S. Role in Palestine
| Understanding the U.S. Role in Palestine: Just the Facts… |
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- At least 26 states have enacted laws infringing upon the right to boycott the Israeli state for its abusive and illegal practices.
- The United States has vetoed at least 53 UN Security Council resolutions critical of Israel.
- In 2018 the United States, under President Trump, severely cut aid to Palestine and Palestinians, including $231.5 million of bilateral economic assistance intended for the West Bank and Gaza (including $25 million for occupied Jerusalem hospitals).
- U.S. aid to Palestine in 2019 was a measly $0.6 million.
- In March 2021, the Biden Administration allocated $15 million for COVID response and emergency food assistance in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
- In April 2021, the Biden administration announced the resumption of some aid, including $115 million in bilateral aid to Palestinians and $10 million to peacebuilding programs.
- That aid is still a fraction of the $496 million in aid provided in 2012.
- It also reinstated $150 million in contributions for humanitarian response to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA);
- But that too is a fraction of the $359.3 million it gave to UNRWA in 2017.
- Meanwhile, Israel receives $3.3 billion annually in foreign military financing (FMF) and $500 million for missile defense systems, along with other subsidies and tax-breaks.
- Israel receives more FMF from the U.S. than all other countries in the world combined.
This week’s facts come from:
- “A history of the US blocking UN resolutions against Israel” from Al Jazeera
- “U.S. Legislation in Opposition to Palestinian Rights” from Addameer
- “U.S. Resumption of Foreign Aid to the Palestinians” from the Congressional Research Service
- “Bringing Assistance to Israel in Line With Rights and U.S. Laws” from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Learning More
You might want to read “10 Things to Know: Biden’s Approach to the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict” by Ambassador Hesham Youssef for the United States Institute of Peace. To go deeper, we will be developing an extensive list of Additional Resources at the bottom of this week’s entry as well as a YouTube playlist on the subject.