US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order withdrawing the US from the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) and prohibiting any future funding for the UN Relief and Works Agency for the Near East (UNRWA)
US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order withdrawing the US from the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) and prohibiting any future funding for the UN Relief and Works Agency for the Near East (UNRWA), the agency which provides relief for Palestinian refugees.
A review of UNESCO membership will also be conducted.
“The Executive Order also requires the secretary of state to review and report to the president on which international organisations, conventions or treaties promote radical or anti-American sentiment,” added the US state department, in a February 5 social media announcement.
According to a White House statement, Trump’s administration believes that many UN agencies have drifted from their stated mission of preventing future global conflicts and promoting international peace and security.
The February 3 executive order claimed that many of them “Instead act contrary to the interests of the US while attacking our allies and propagating anti-Semitism”.
The order specifically named the UNRWA, the UNHRC and UNESCO as deserving of renewed scrutiny.
It suggested that UNRWA has been infiltrated by members of groups designated as terrorist organisations, and that UNRWA employees were involved in the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel. It added that UNESCO has continually demonstrated anti-Israel sentiment over the past decade.
“The United States will not participate in the UNHRC and will not seek election to that body,” it added, noting that the position of US representative to the body would be terminated.
The US will also conduct a review of its membership in UNESCO. Conducted by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the US ambassador to the UN, the review will analyse how and if the body supports the interests of the US, and examine any anti-Israel sentiment within the organisation.
All funding to the UNHRC and UNRWA has been frozen.
A review of all international intergovernmental organisations, conventions and treaties to which the US is a member or signatory will also be conducted, with the goal of determining which are contrary to US interests.
The review board has 180 days to recommend to the president which organisations, conventions and treaties the US should withdraw from.
