SWC Calls on German Chancellor Scholz to Immediately Review All Funding for PA and UNWRA

August 25, 2022

Los Angeles – The Simon Wiesenthal Center is calling on German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to take action/impose sanctions on the PA and decrease aid after Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas accused Israel of committing "50 Holocaust" against Palestinians in a recent scandalous speech in Berlin. 

While Chancellor Scholz denounced Abbas’ despicable linkage of the Shoah to the Palestinian Israeli conflict, Abbas then returned to the PA territories to a hero’s  welcome. Palestinian entities continue to promote Holocaust denial and revisionism including a recent Holocaust-denying documentary produced by the Fatah movement. 

Just today, the PA Authority newspaper, Al-Hayat Al-Jadida stated, ”…the Palestinian people and their pollicial leadership have the right to use this term [Holocaust] to describe the Israeli racial cleansing state.”

“Enough is enough. We urge Chancellor Scholz to order an immediate open review of Germany’s massive funding of UNWRA and Palestinian entities which promote anti-Semitism, violence and terrorism against Israelis and the Jewish people,” said Rabbi Abraham Cooper, SWC Associate Dean & Global Social Action Director.

“Germany is amongst the biggest donors to the PA and Palestinian-related agencies - if not the biggest - donors of aid to the PA/PLO. Between 2021 and 2022, Berlin sent Ramallah approximately 340 million euro in aid. It’s time for Germany to demand accountability and transparency to ensure it is not funding incitement of violence and hatred against the Jewish people,” Cooper concluded. 

For further information, please email Michele Alkin, Director of Global Communications at malkin@wiesenthal.com or Shawn Rodgers at srodgers@wiesenthal.com, join the Center on Facebook, or follow @simonwiesenthal for news updates sent directly to your Twitter feed.

 

The Simon Wiesenthal Center is an international Jewish human rights organization numbering over 400.000 members. It holds consultative status at the United Nations, UNESCO, the OSCE, the Council of Europe, the OAS, and the Latin American Parliament (PARLATINO).