{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.lankford.senate.gov/news/press-releases/lankford-cotton-colleagues-to-trump-eliminate-un-agency-that-employs-hamas-terrorists-2/", "Lankford, Cotton, Colleagues to Trump: Eliminate UN Agency that Employs Hamas-Terrorists", "2026-05-19", "2026", "2026-05", "Republican", "Senate", "OK", "James Lankford", "L000575", "www.lankford.senate.gov", "lankford", "https://www.lankford.senate.gov/news/press-releases", "page_html", "WASHINGTON, DC \u2014 US Senators James Lankford (R-OK) and Tom Cotton (R-AR), joined by 23 colleagues, sent a letter to President Trump requesting that his administration work with the United Nations (UN) to fully dismantle and eliminate the budget of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA). Numerous UNRWA employees have ties to Hamas and other terrorist groups, yet they continue to receive millions of dollars annually from the UN.\n\nJoining Lankford and Cotton in sending the letter are Senators Jim Banks (R-IN), John Barrasso (R-WY), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Katie Britt (R-AL), Ted Budd (R-NC), Susan Collins (R-ME), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Ted Cruz (R-TX), John Curtis (R-UT), Joni Ernst (R-IA), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), John Hoeven (R-ND), Mike Lee (R-UT), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Dave McCormick (R-PA), Mike Rounds (R-SD), Rick Scott (R-FL), Tim Scott (R-SC), Tim Sheehy (R-MT), and Roger Wicker (R-MS).\n\nIn part, the Senators wrote, \u201cWe strongly urge your administration to take decisive action to fully dismantle UNRWA and eliminate it from the UN budget. Any aid organization in Gaza or otherwise must be demonstrably free of ties to terrorism and committed to transparency, accountability, and peace. We must ensure this failed system doesn\u2019t continue reinforcing the conditions that have fueled terrorism for generations. The time to act is now.\u201d\n\nRead the full letter text HERE or below:\n\nDear President Trump,\n\nWe strongly support your administration\u2019s efforts to preserve Israel\u2019s long-term security and ensure that Gaza has a future free of Hamas\u2019s terrorist influence. Your strong leadership has been instrumental in advancing a comprehensive 20-point peace plan that demands Hamas disarm and play no role in Gaza governance. Achieving stability in Gaza requires ridding Gaza of the military, social, and political infrastructure that fed Hamas\u2019s power. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) is one such structure that must be dismantled, not just in Gaza but across the region.\n\nEstablished in 1949 as a temporary relief agency, UNRWA operates across Gaza, Judea and Samaria, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria. In defiance of its mission, extensive reports, investigations, and intelligence assessments have confirmed UNRWA\u2019s systemic infiltration by Hamas and other U.S.-designated terrorist organizations. Yet America continued to fund UNRWA.\n\nIsrael found that at least twelve UNRWA employees participated in the Hamas-led October 7 attacks, and that roughly ten percent of the agency\u2019s employees in Gaza have ties to terrorist groups. Recently, a USAID Office of Inspector General (OIG) investigation identified three additional UNRWA employees who participated in the attacks as well as 14 others affiliated with Hamas. The USAID OIG is expanding its probe to examine more than 100 UNRWA employees for potential ties to Hamas and involvement in the attacks.\n\nSince October 7, Hamas has repeatedly diverted UNRWA\u2019s supplies, used its facilities to hide weapons stockpiles and tunnel infrastructure, and even used its buildings to hold hostages. UNRWA\u2019s educational curriculum glorifies terrorism and antisemitism. Yet while the United States has suspended direct funding and Israel has banned the agency from operating on its territory, UNRWA remains active in Gaza. UNRWA continues to receive $70 million annually from the United Nations regular budget \u2013 of which the United States provides roughly a quarter.\n\nWe strongly urge your administration to take decisive action to fully dismantle UNRWA and eliminate it from the UN budget. Any aid organization in Gaza or otherwise must be demonstrably free of ties to terrorism and committed to transparency, accountability, and peace. We must ensure this failed system doesn\u2019t continue reinforcing the conditions that have fueled terrorism for generations. The time to act is now.\n\nThank you for your attention to this matter. We stand prepared to assist.\n\nSincerely,\n\n(X)\n\n###", 1, "2026-05-20T06:27:31Z", "2026-05-20T06:28:54Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.lankford.senate.gov/news/press-releases/lankford-cotton-colleagues-to-trump-eliminate-un-agency-that-employs-hamas-terrorists-2/"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.9968350641429424, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}