The U.S. State Department confirmed on Monday that the federal budgetary support for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) will reach a record $223 million in 2023. This represents an increase of $16 million on the previous year.

The increased funding reinforced the U.S. as UNRWA's largest donor. Albeit, under President Donald Trump all funding to the agency had halted, but since President Joe Biden took office, Washington allocated nearly a billion dollars to the entity criticized for promoting terrorism.

This move comes despite criticism voiced by Barbara Leaf, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, at a recent meeting with members of the American House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee. She expressed concern about reports of incitement to violence and murder in UNRWA schools. 

Leaf said that the State Department was aware of these problems and was committed to resolving them, without, however, specifying the measures envisaged. The issue of inciting violence by UNRWA has already been a concern for some time. 

A joint report by UN Watch and the IMPACT-se research and policy institute, which examines and analyzes educational material worldwide, revealed that UNRWA teachers and schools regularly incite the murder of Jews. According to the report, Palestinian educational institutions produce study materials that glorify terror, encourage jihadist martyrdom, demonize Israelis and incite anti-Semitism.

According to the reports, UNRWA schools teach children to sacrifice their lives and liberate Jerusalem in their Arabic grammar, spelling and vocabulary classes. Another example was a song, taught as part of Arabic language training, that defined death as "a pastime" obtainable by killing Israelis, and asserting that peace is a sign of weakness rather than a desirable goal.