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U.S. is one of just 14 countries fo vote against UNESCO membership for Palestine
NEW YORK (AP/France24) – The Obama administration is cutting off funding for the U.N. cultural agency because it approved a Palestinian bid for full membership.
State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland says Monday’s vote triggers a long-standing congressional restriction on funding to U.N. bodies that recognize Palestine as a state before an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal is reached.
Nuland says UNESCO’s decision was “regrettable, premature and undermines our shared goal to a comprehensive, just and lasting peace” between Israelis and Palestinians.
VIDEO: UNESCO Announcement of Voting Result
"But I will not let myself be reduced to silence."
