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A Common Sense UN Move
(The Hill) Richard Schifter and Eric Rozenman - UNRWA was established as a temporary measure just after Israel's 1948-1949 War of Independence to provide short-term humanitarian assistance to the 420,000-650,000 Arab refugees from what became Israel. Over the years, UNRWA has helped prolong the refugee problem it was created to resolve. It boasts an annual budget of $1.3 billion, of which American taxpayers provide $400 million. During the 2014 Gaza war, UNRWA facilities - including schools and clinics - served wittingly or unwittingly as weapons depots and rocket launch pads. During periods of quiet, anti-Israeli, anti-Jewish curricula in UNRWA schools have indoctrinated future generations of terror recruits. Since simply abolishing UNRWA would overburden Jordan and the Palestinian Authority, the U.S. should call for UNRWA to be folded into the office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and require that Palestinian Arab refugees be treated like all other displaced groups. Amb. Richard Schifter is chairman of the American Jewish International Relations Institute. Eric Rozenman is communications consultant for the Jewish Policy Center.