Biden Admin Slammed for Abstaining on U.N. Vote that Could ‘Destroy’ Israel

The UN General Assembly reconvened in person for the first time since the start of the pan
AFP

The Biden administration is under fire for abstaining on a U.N. General Assembly resolution affirming the so-called right of return for Palestinian refugees to sovereign Israel, a move former President Donald Trump’s envoy to Israel said could effectively “destroy the Jewish state.”

The resolution, titled “Assistance to Palestine Refugees,” supports the U.N. Relief and Works Agency’s (UNRWA) call for Palestinian right of return to Israel as well as receive compensation for property lost when they fled their homes.

The Palestinian right of return is one of the core issues at the heart of the conflict and one that Israel will never agree to. It calls for Palestinian refugees who fled their homes after 1948‘s War of Independence and their millions of descendants to return to their ancestral homes in Israel proper, a move that would spell the end of the Jewish state by demographic means.

“What! The United States has no opinion on a resolution which, taken to its logical extension, would destroy the Jewish State,” former U.S. ambassador to Israel under the Trump administration, David Friedman, wrote on Twitter alongside an article by the Jerusalem Post on the U.S.’ abstention.

The decision to abstain marked a departure to the voting trend set by the Trump administration, which automatically voted “no.”

“We were pleased to see language included in several of the resolutions that reflect our priorities in line with strengthening UNRWA,” Richard Mills, U.S. Deputy Representative to the United Nations, said, referring to the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees.

“Under President Biden, the United States announced it would restore its financial support to UNRWA, which we do believe is a vital lifeline to millions of Palestinians across the region.”

The Israeli representative called on the global body to ensure that UNRWA was not “hijacked by Hamas,” the Post reported.

“We cannot stand idly by when a U.N. humanitarian agency promotes a political agenda under the guise of true assistance,” the Israel representative said.

“UNRWA must be accountable for the hateful indoctrination of children in its classrooms. It must put an end to the spreading of antisemitic lies by its employees, and it must show a genuine commitment to transparency and accountability,” she added.

 The Biden administration made a decision to resume funding for UNRWA despite the fact that it promotes violence against Israelis and that its schools – by the U.N.’s own admission – have been used as weapons caches and as launching pads for Hamas rockets.

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