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Tell your member of Congress you unfreeze U.S. aid to Palestinians U.S. aid helps provide for the health and dignity of all in the region Dear CMEP Friend,
11%. That’s the percentage of Palestinian children under the age of five who face chronic malnutrition in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. 90 – 95%. That’s the estimated portion of water sources in the Gaza Strip that are not fit for human consumption. 137. That’s the number of primary healthcare centers that UNRWA alone provides to Palestinians. U.S. foreign aid funds programs that work to address these critical humanitarian issues that impact Palestinians throughout the West Bank and Gaza. The United States development agency, USAID, contracted NGOs like Catholic Relief Services and the Lutheran World Federation, and UN agencies supported by U.S. dues administer food assistance to vulnerable families in Gaza, work to expand and improve the health infrastructure throughout Gaza and the West Bank, and provide education services for Palestinian children. This work is vital to laying the foundation for a future Palestinian state that can live side-by-side in peace with Israel. Yet the funding for these critical programs is under serious threat. Write your members of Congress today and tell them that cutting funding to the Palestinian government and people is detrimental to Israeli, Palestinian, and U.S. interests alike. Tell your elected officials that you support continued U.S. aid to Palestinians and the UN agencies that support them and that it is time to move past punitive measures and begin to lay the building blocks for a future peace. Of even greater concern are the threats coming from Congress, in response to the Palestinian bid at the UN, that would decimate future U.S. support for the Palestinian Authority, and funding for humanitarian programs and projects throughout the West Bank and Gaza Strip. In the House of Representatives, the draft text of the State Department and Foreign Operations Appropriations bill and the United Nations reform bill, H.R. 2829, both seek to eviscerate U.S. funding for the Palestinian Authority and programs that support Palestinian people. In the Senate, the appropriations bill to fund the State Department and Foreign Operations (S.1601) also places new and additional conditions on U.S. foreign aid to the Palestinian people and government. The called-for cuts would not only harm the health and well-being of Palestinians, but could also impact the health and stability of the region. Write your members of Congress today and let them know that you believe the called-for funding cuts are detrimental to U.S., Israeli, and Palestinian interests alike. Urge them to support continued U.S. aid to the Palestinians and the UN agencies that assist them because this aid helping to lay the groundwork for a future peace! |
Formed in 1984, Churches for Middle East Peace is a coalition of 24 national Church denominations and organizations, including Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant traditions. It works to encourage U.S. government policies that actively promote a just, lasting and comprehensive resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, ensuring security, human rights and religious freedom for all people of the region. info@cmep.org | 202-543-1222 |
