On February 4, 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order that pulled the U.S. out of several important United Nations organizations, including the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC).

The order also outlined a broader review of the U.S. financial contributions to these international bodies.

As part of the executive order, the U.S. withdrew from the UNHRC and the main UN agency for Palestinian refugees, the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA).

Additionally, Trump’s order called for a reassessment of the U.S. involvement in UNESCO, the UN’s cultural and educational agency.

This move coincided with the visit of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Washington. Netanyahu has long criticized UNRWA, accusing the organization of promoting anti-Israel rhetoric and supporting terrorism.

The U.S. had already stopped funding UNRWA during Trump’s first term, calling for reforms and linking aid to progress in peace talks between Israel and Palestine.

Trump had also withdrawn the U.S. from the UN Human Rights Council in 2018, citing its anti-Israel bias and lack of reform.

At the time, the U.S. said the council’s focus on Israel was unfair and detrimental to its mission of protecting human rights globally. The U.S. has not been a member of the council since then.

Since starting his second term in January 2025, Trump has continued his “America First” foreign policy, making moves such as withdrawing from the World Health Organization and the Paris Climate Agreement, both of which he also did during his first term.

UNRWA had been the largest recipient of U.S. foreign aid in the region, with Washington providing up to $400 million a year in support.

However, in early 2024, after the deadly Hamas attack on Israel, U.S. Congress paused its funding to UNRWA due to accusations that some of its staff were involved in the attack.

As a result, all U.S. contributions to the organization were officially suspended until at least March 2025.