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Norway, UN to retract funds of a Palestinian women’s center

Prime Minister Netanyahu welcomed a decision by both the Norwegian government and United Nations to remove their affiliation from a Palestinian women’s center that was named in honor of a terrorist Dalal Mughrabi, who headed a terrorist cell in 1978 that committed the Coastal Road Massacre, in which 35 Israeli civilians were murdered, including 12 children. The Dalal Mughrabi women’s center had received funding from Norway through the Palestinian Election Commission and an organization called “UN Women in Palestine,” which promotes the participation of Palestinian women in elections. Norwegian Foreign Minister Børge Brende has strongly condemned the Palestinian Authority for using Norwegian aid money to establish a women’s center in honor of a terrorist, declaring that “Norway will not allow itself to be identified with institutions that are named after terrorists,” and “will not accept the use of Norwegian aid for such purposes.”

The United Nations was also furious by the Palestinian use of UN funds for the purpose of establishing a center in honor of a terrorist. Spokesman for the UN Secretary-General Stéphane Dujarric issued a statement, also disassociating the world body from the Palestinian decision to name the internationally funded center after a terrorist, stressing that the United Nations “will take measures to ensure that such incidents do not take place in the future. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reacted to the strong condemnations by both the Norwegian government and United Nations, saying it was as part of Israel’s efforts to battle and expose the ongoing Palestinian incitement against the Jewish State.

“A few days ago I asked Yuval Rotem, CEO of the Foreign Ministry, to tell the Norwegian government to pull its funding of a women’s organization named after Dalal Mughrabi, who participated in the murder go dozens of Israelis in the “blood bath bus” among them children. I asked them to cease the financial aid and cut connections with this organization. I am happy to say that Norway’s Foreign Minister, Borge Brende , did exactly that, and it is a good thing that he did. We have also approached the UN Secretary General and told him to halt the UN sponsorship of this organization, in my understanding they are indeed doing just that. These are outgrowths of things we do in a broad spectrum,” said Netanyahu.