Netanyahu lauds US funding halt to UN Palestinian agency

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu yesterday lauded the US decision to halt funding for the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, arguing the body perpetuates the problem instead of solving it.

"The US has done a very important thing by halting the financing for the refugee perpetuation agency known as UNRWA," Netanyahu said while visiting a school for the start of the academic year.

"It is finally beginning to resolve the problem."

He added that the money "must be taken and used to genuinely help rehabilitate the refugees, the true number of which is much smaller than the number reported by UNRWA".

The United States announced Friday it was ending funding to UNRWA, or the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian refugees.

Washington has long been the largest single donor to the agency, providing more than $350 million a year.

The decision followed another one by Washington on August 24 to cancel more than $200 million in bilateral aid to Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.

Palestinian leaders have harshly condemned the US moves, accusing US President Donald Trump's administration of seeking to "liquidate" their cause.

Trump's recognition of the disputed city of Jerusalem as Israel's capital in December had already led Palestinian leaders to cut off contact with the White House.