Trump to cut $25M in aid for east Jerusalem hospitals: State Dept.

The Trump administration is cutting $25 million in aid earmarked for Palestinians in east Jerusalem hospitals.

The State Department in a statement to The Hill said the money will be redirected to “high-priority projects elsewhere.” 

“At the direction of the President, we will be redirecting approximately $25 million originally planned for the East Jerusalem Hospital Network,” the State Department official said. “Those funds will go to high-priority projects elsewhere.”

Reuters first reported the decision.{mosads}

The move is the latest in a series of significant cutbacks in aid for Palestinians by the U.S. 

The Palestinian Foreign Ministry denounced the latest slash as an attempt to “liquidate the Palestinian cause.” 

“This dangerous and unjustified American escalation has crossed all red lines and is considered a direct aggression against the Palestinian people,” the ministry said in a statement reported by Reuters.

The East Jerusalem Hospital Network, which includes six hospitals serving Palestinians in the region, has been described by the World Health Organization (WHO) as “historic.” 

The network of hospitals supported by U.S. aid have been one of the main providers of medical care for Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. They provided care for medical problems that the Ministry of Health is unable to address, including cancer, cardiac and eye surgeries, dialysis and neonatal care, according to the WHO.

The U.S. is poised to cut more than $200 million in economic aid for Palestinians, according to the State Department. 

The Trump administration in August halted all funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, a United Nations body that provides aid for Palestinian refugees. 

President Trump significantly escalated tensions with Palestinian leaders when he recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and announced his intentions to move the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv, actions widely denounced by Palestinians as a reversal of international precedent.