How much aid does the US give Palestinians, and what’s it for?

The Times of Israel ^ | 01/03/2018 | By DOV LIEBER

[SeekAndFind]

The United States is by far the largest donor of financial aid to the Palestinians, with this assistance touching nearly every aspect of life in the Palestinian Authority. But US President Donald Trump threatened on Tuesday to end this aid to the Palestinians, angered by Ramallah’s refusal to cooperate with the US’s efforts to jump-start Israeli-Palestinian peace talks after he declared Jerusalem the capital of Israel in December.

The Palestinians want East Jerusalem to be the capital of their future state.

Trump tweeted on Tuesday that Washington was paying the PA hundreds of millions of dollars a year “for nothing,” and complained that the US received “no appreciation or respect” in return.

Earlier on Tuesday, US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley threatened to cut off funding to the UN’s Palestinian refugee agency, UNRWA, if the Palestinians refused to engage in peace negotiations.

Should the threats of the president and Haley come to fruition, what kind of impact could this have on the Palestinians?

Three types of US assistance to the Palestinians According to the US Consulate in Jerusalem’s website, the United States has been the largest donor of aid to the Palestinians since the signing of the Oslo Accords in 1994. This aid has totaled around $600 million annually in recent years, and can be roughly divided into three categories.

The first is USAID, the conduit by which the State Department provides aid to countries across the world. The second is the economic support for law and order in the Palestinian Authority. These two categories were perhaps the aid that Trump had in mind in his tweet, though the president did not specify. The third is the US support for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, or UNRWA, as addressed by Haley.

[SeekAndFind]

Over 5 billion in USAID since 1994 Since 1994, Washington has provided the Palestinians with more than $5.2 billion through USAID. This money is used for developing and sustaining the Palestinian Authority, including support for debt relief (such as helping to pay the medical debts of Palestinians in Israeli or other foreign hospitals), sanitation, economic development in the public and private sectors, infrastructure development, education, governance, health and essential humanitarian assistance to the Gaza Strip.

The USAID money is also a lifeline for dozens of NGOs that work in the Palestinian territories on the grassroots level to support conflict mitigation and instill values of non-violence and peace-seeking.

Separate from this USAID money, which in 2016 equaled $290 million, the US also gives a large sum every year to support law and order.

This support, for which almost $55 million was budgeted in 2016, includes training and supplying equipment to the PA security forces and the police force, firefighter training, rehabilitating courtrooms and training judges as well as lawyers.

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[Blue Highway]

cut off the gravy train NOW!

[tennmountainman]

Exactly!

[READINABLUESTATE]

[Former Seattle police detective Glen] Kerns discovered some of the money was being funneled to a Hawala in the region of Somalia that is controlled by the al Shabaab terrorist group.

https://www.americanexperiment.org/2018/05/is-this-the-worst-scandal-minnesota-history/

[Jimmy Valentine]

All of this and Abbas has a new Gulfstream. The only benefi from our aid is to Swiss bankers

[Mark17]

I think much of it goes to line the pockets of the leaders, so they can have their private jets, and their mansions. Maybe much goes into funding terrorists around the world.
I used to wonder why we are giving money to the dregs of the world. Now, I am thinking, it is possibly, because we have many enemies in our own government, who deliberately want to help our enemies destroy us.

[GoldenPup]

Trump tweeted on Tuesday that Washington was paying the PA hundreds of millions of dollars a year “for nothing,”..

So STOP IT ALREADY...what’s the problem? Like hitting yourself in the head with a hammer to see how good it feels when you stop!!

[hal ogen]

Giving even one penny of US taxpayers’ money to these unrepentant, murderous, blood-soaked terrorists is beyond the pall. Until they become civil and stop murdering everyone they should be allowed to fester in their own juices. No humanitarian aid...nothing. Cut the crap. Palis are the ultimate subhuman losers.

[I want the USA back]

Any money given to them will be used to try to kill Israelis and other humans. Not a cent to them!

[rjsimmon]

When our country amasses considerable debt to run it should not be dolling out funds to any nation that does not provide some return on our investment. In the case of the ME, giving cash to Moslem countries is not only a bad fiscal move, it is the antithesis to our National security.

[Netz]

There’s a misconception that even after 25 years of failed policy, a bloody Intifada, endless terror attacks, shrill incitement to murder, lying, the West, the US State Dept., European Foreign Ministries all still believe that the PLO, HAMAS and a myriad of other terror organizations really want peace.

Reality and fact dissipates this myth yet they still cling to the idea that we will pay the “moderates” (PLO) and they can be enticed into making peace wit the Israelis.

Billions have been spent on propping up the so-called Palestinian Authority led by Arfart and now Abbas. Go to the internet and search for Arafart’s and Abbas’ mansions in Ramallah. Go take a look where US and other countries’ tax es have gone.

The West and Israel built them everything they needed to establish a state infrastructure. They even built an international airport in Gaza called “Dahaniya”. The Palestinians got everything they wanted on a silver platter.

The Israelis even gave them APCs and weapons in order to consolidate their power in Gaza and the West Bank.

What was the sum result of the investment of Billions of Dollars?

The PLO/HAMAS waged a war on Israeli civilians, calling it the Intifada II.

What do they want? Certainly not a state but rather be in a position of “Perma-Refugee”, poor little diddum underdogs, just keep the terror cash flow coming folks and we never leave the cycle.

Israel knows how to make peace. She’ done it.

The Palestinians are a people not yet ripe for civilization, Democracy, Liberal thought, openness, Capitalism, rational thought, free enterprise and above all, the magic word that does not exist in their vocabulary but exists in every enlightened nation’s vocabulary - COMPROMISE.

[Balding_Eagle]

Did you even read the article? Embedded in the article, very plainly, is the reason not to end the aid right now.

[jazminerose]

It’s to finance suicide vests and training.

[Bodega]

Did you even read the article? Embedded in the article, very plainly, is the reason not to end the aid right now.
**********************
Nuts. And when we go bankrupt we will wail and gnash teeth bemoaning the money to the very groups who will storm onto our lands and snap up all the bargains. Are we stupid? Yes...all of us for not demanding this aid to Palestine stop and supporting the UN stop. STOP IT ALL. What benefit is it to us? None at this point and none in the future as far as I can see. Nuts!!

[Blue Highway]

Yes read it again to see if I missed anything in it. Are you one of the naive that is hoodwinked by bleeding heart liberals and thinks this money is going to the poor, suffering, peaceful Palestinians? Did you also read the part where we are considering dismantling this UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency)organization as the money is clearly not spent on educating them, but rather indoctrinating them to hate and kill jews. Do you not understand this?

[Blue Highway]

Please, do tell what in this article screams that we shouldn’t end aid to this terrorist faction?

[The_Media_never_lie]

Any aid to Palistinians is wasted money.

[Balding_Eagle]

I’m sorry you couldn’t see it for yourself.

The aid is being used as a lever to possibly bring the Palestinians to bargaining table that Donald Trump wants.

It’s a very powerful lever in shouldn’t be discarded lightly.

[Balding_Eagle]

See post number 18.

[EQAndyBuzz]

“Giving even one penny of US taxpayers’ money to these unrepentant, murderous, blood-soaked terrorists is beyond the pall. Until they become civil and stop murdering everyone they should be allowed to fester in their own juices. No humanitarian aid...nothing. Cut the crap. Palis are the ultimate subhuman losers.”

They want Iran to back them, let Iran pay for it.