Red Alert: Why is the United Nations not so united to its original mission?
Several articles captured my attention this week when it comes to The UN (United Nations). You may remember last winter when we protested outside the UNWRA DC headquarters demanding that funding to the Palestinian education system cease until it was vetted to NOT be aiding in terrorism: Particularly, teaching hate within the school curriculums of the PA areas– from pre-school to higher ed. StandWithUS posted this past week a quote from Jerusalem’s Deputy Mayor Fleur Hassan-Nahoum:
UNRWA is funded by the entire world, and more than half goes to the Palestinian education system. I’m not saying don’t fund UNRWA, I’m saying fund UNRWA on condition that they take out the antisemitism and incitement from their schoolbooks.” Palestinian children deserve better.
A July 7 2022 Times of Israel article specifically addresses the incitements and calls for terrorism within the educational materials paid for by UN funding, and is the core of what the protest against this funding is about.
To quote from the article:
An Israeli watchdog has found that educational textbooks produced by the UN’s Palestinian refugee agency continue to contain incitement to violence against Israel and hatred of Jews, despite promises to remove such content.
Instead, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) has hidden the material by removing it from its public educational online portal, the Institute for Monitoring Peace and Cultural Tolerance in School Education (IMPACT-se) said in a statement Thursday. According to an IMPACT-se report, UNRWA-produced educational literature “contains material that encourages jihad, violence and martyrdom, promotes antisemitism, and promotes hate, intolerance, and lack of neutrality.”
My friend, Gil Kapen of The AJIRI (the American Jewish International Relations Institute) co-penned a piece for The Jerusalem Post noting the appointment of virulent anti-Zionists to UN commissions, despite protests. (You can also find this article on The Jerusalem Connection Blog page.)
In the article titled, “UN violated its own rules, appointed biased commissioners against Israel”, the authors address with specificity the “paper trails of Vitriolic anti-Israel rhetoric and actions” when the stated ethics of the UN are that all officials: …in performance of their official duties shall always act with impartiality, objectivity and professionalism. They shall ensure that the expression of personal views and convictions does not compromise OR APPEAR TO COMPROMISE the performance of their official duties or the interests of the UN. They shall not act in any way that could lead to actual or perceived preferential treatment for or against particular individuals, groups, or interests -UN Ethics Committee
Surely all potential appointees have some personal opinions about topics. Yet certainly those with more temperate and reasoned approaches to their opinions regarding Israel, who have not spent their public airtime condemning Israel, could be found and appointed. This would help so at least the appearance of compromised performance or perceived treatments can be mitigated. The AJIRI is a vital organization that has worked for nearly two decades to dismantle the anti-Israel bent the United Nations maintains. As reported by The Red Alert over the years, the UN disproportionality and with malice and lies singles out and resolves against the only democracy in the Middle East that offers human rights and protections to all its citizens and inhabitants. The hypocrisy is tangible, obvious, and documentable.
For more information on why the AJIRI’s work is so necessary and why The Jerusalem Connection not only endorses their work but is willing to partner with them whenever possible, check out two of their website pages from their main page menu: Why It Matters and The Interactive U.N. Voting Dashboard: Find out what resolutions are developed (as absurd as they are) and who is voting for what—and under what pressures.
This information is fuel for how you navigate your vote, your voice, and your actions in whatever jurisdiction you reside to live out your personal mandate in Isaiah to “Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.” As we recognize God’s promise in Genesis 13, “I will bless those who bless you, But I will curse those who curse you. And through you I will bless all the nations.” If only we can get the UN to take these Bible Verses to heart. Shavua Tov have a great week.