Aid to Palestinians Part 2
Aid may flow again to Palestinians
The US, UN, EU, and Russia say they will release international aid, but bypass Hamas-led government.
A Palestinian woman receives food supplies donated by the Israeli Islamic movement, in the West Bank city of Jenin May 11, 2006. Israel accepted on Wednesday a decision by major Middle East peace brokers to resume some aid payments to the Palestinians -- a move that could ease intense economic pressure on the Hamas-led government. REUTERS/Abed Omar Qusini
By Ilene R. Prusher, Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor
May 11, 2006
JERUSALEM – With the Palestinian economy lurching toward the breaking point, Israeli officials said Wednesday that they would not oppose a decision by Middle East peacebrokers to resume financial aid to the Palestinian Authority (PA), even though its government is controlled by Hamas.
But the decision Tuesday by the Quartet - the US, the United Nations, European Union, and Russia - to release international aid that has been held since Hamas's election in January is already facing challenges.
While the donor countries want to alleviate suffering and help prevent a total financial breakdown in the PA, most - in particular, the US - say they remain committed to keeping funds out of the hands of Hamas.
"As far as we are concerned, the Quartet's decision to give further humanitarian support to the Palestinian Authority, bypassing the Hamas government, is definitely OK," Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said in an interview on Israel's Army Radio.
Ms. Livni's statement indicated that Israel is willing to accept the fine-tuning of definitions being tested out by the international donor community. This latest plan is intended to separate humanitarian aid from direct budgetary assistance that has been given in the past, which was used to pay salaries of government employees.
As of Wednesday, however, US officials were unsure whether the release of funds would include funding for PA salaries, and pointed out that the statements after Wednesday's Quartet meeting left out all mention of the issue.
"One of the main interests is that the funding not go to Hamas, because that would in fact be a legal problem, at least for us," says Stuart Tuttle, the spokesman of the US embassy in Tel Aviv. Read more...
As Gazans Wait for Aid, Their Situation Is Dire
A gold vendor in the ancient market in the Kisariya district of Gaza City put a piece of jewelry up for sale last week as more was brought in.
By STEVEN ERLANGER
May 11, 2006
The new York Times
GAZA, May 4 — In the gold souk of Kisariya, the oldest part of Gaza City, named after Caesar, the market goes only one way these days. "Everyone is selling — no one is buying," said Rafiq Ayyad, 65, a jeweler and dealer here for 40 years. "I've rarely seen it so bad."
Imad and Sanaa al-Kassar, 23 and 21, were married nine months ago. With Sanaa 6 months pregnant, they came to sell the gold jewelry he gave her for the wedding. "We need the money for the baby," she said. Imad, an employee of the bankrupt and isolated Palestinian Authority, has not been paid in two months.
Zahiya Abu Watfa
Zahiya Abu Watfa, 70, was selling an exquisite bracelet of gold coins that she had owned since 1956. She needs the money for food and to help her children.
Jewelry, like land, is a traditional investment here, one of the last possessions to be sold. But conditions are getting dire for many, with 35 percent of the Gaza Strip's 1.4 million people dependent on salaries from the Palestinian Authority. Credit is exhausted and the economy is slowing down.
Tension is palpable between armed groups of supporters of Hamas, which runs the new government, and Fatah, the faction of the longtime leaders, who lost power in elections in January.
Gazans are wary, watchful and increasingly angry at their plight. For now they are angry at the United States for withholding financial support over the Hamas victory. But their anger may also turn against Hamas, whose refusal to recognize Israel has isolated its government, some Fatah leaders warn.
[Already there have been clashes, which worsened Monday, when three Palestinians died in Fatah-Hamas fighting near Khan Yunis in the south, and continued Tuesday, when 12 Palestinians were wounded, including five schoolchildren and four Fatah members.]
After Hamas took over the Palestinian Authority, Israel stopped transferring $50 million a month in tax and customs revenues, and the United States and European Union cut most of their aid, including budget support, since Hamas is listed as a terrorist group by the United States, the European Union and Israel.
"The Palestinians are furious with the United States, which presses democracy and then punishes us for our free vote," said Ahmed Yousef, a political adviser to Prime Minister Ismail Haniya, a Hamas leader.
"It took the Islamists more than two decades to decide to participate in democratic voting," Mr. Yousef said. "For us it's a big step in the right direction. But this is selective democracy — not what the people decide, but whether their decision fits America or not."
[On Tuesday in New York, the United States and the European Union agreed to create a temporary mechanism, which would bypass the Palestinian Authority, to provide medical and other aid, plus some European money for salaries. But the monthly salary bill is $120 million, and while March salaries may be paid, there is little for April, let alone May. The entire European Union yearly aid for the Palestinians would cover about 10 percent of the annual salary bill.]
Mr. Yousef echoed Mr. Haniya's conviction that the Palestinians would stand by Hamas, preserve their dignity and live, if necessary, "on olives and zatar," a local spice of sumac and sesame.
But Talal Okal, a political scientist at Al Azhar University here, is not so sure how long Palestinians will remain steadfast. "When a father cannot feed his family, he may ask himself whether he should starve for the dignity of Hamas," Mr. Okal said. "The dignity of the family may be more important than the dignity of Hamas. Gaza is very fragile right now."
America's policy, Mr. Okal said, "is morally ambiguous, trying to push Hamas" to change "by creating what could be a human catastrophe."
Still, he said, it may work. "Hamas will remain in the government and have to change its political program or leave the government, which I believe it will not do," he said. "Hamas in government is the beginning of a bigger Islamic project in the region, and Hamas believes that the United States doesn't mind experimenting a little if Hamas can become a more moderate model for the region."
The Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, who also leads Fatah, is trying to be a bridge between Hamas and the world, and between Hamas and Fatah.
But he is also being pressed by Muhammad Dahlan, the local Fatah leader here, who also controls the Preventive Security police here, to confront Hamas, say Palestinians and Western diplomats. Mr. Dahlan did not respond to requests for an interview. At the same time, Mr. Abbas recently warned Mr. Haniya publicly that the president had the power to dismiss the government. Read more...
Iran to the rescue?
Geoff D. Porter The New York Times
MAY 11, 2006
International Herald Tribune Opinion
NEW YORK At the very moment when the United States and European Union are pushing for a United Nations Security Council resolution to hem in Iran, their policies toward the Hamas-led Palestinian Authority are forcing Iran and the Palestinians closer together. That prospect is especially alarming under the current leaders in Tehran and Ramallah.
In the past, sectarian and ethnic differences prevented the Palestinians and Iranians from forging an effective relationship. Today, though, the threats of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran to eradicate Israel dovetail with the Hamas charter, which denies Israel's right to exist. The closer Tehran draws to the Palestinian Authority, the likelier it is that the Iranians would retaliate against any American military action on their territory by encouraging Hamas to attack Israel. Arab countries allied to the United States would be happy to counter Iranian influence on Hamas, but they face significant obstacles.
Shortly after Hamas took power in March, the United States and European Union cut aid to the Palestinian Authority on the ground that it was now governed by a group that had been designated a terrorist organization. That left the authority unable to pay its 165,000 employees and helped produce a crisis in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
Immediately, Hamas officials fanned out across the Arab world to drum up funds. Oil- and gas-rich Algeria, Qatar and Saudi Arabia committed money. The Arab League also promised financial support at its March meeting. But no funds were actually transferred to the Palestinian Authority, because the banks handling the contributions are wary of running afoul of American laws against financing terrorist organizations.
Iran, too, pledged to send money to the Palestinian Authority after a high-level meeting with two Hamas leaders in Syria. And the Iranian commitment is different from the Arab one. Although Ahmadinejad does not steer Iran's foreign policy, his ideological rhetoric frames policy debates and could compel Iran's Guardian Council to give Hamas much more money than Arab countries are willing to contribute.
Moreover, because Iran disregards American restrictions on financing terrorist groups, its money stands a good chance of actually reaching the Palestinian Authority, but for one impediment: no Iranian banks have offices in the Palestinian Authority, nor do any Palestinian banks have representation in Iran. This is a technical hurdle, easily overcome through the use of off-shore banks that could handle Iranian funds destined for the Palestinian Authority.
On Tuesday, the United States endorsed a European proposal to establish a fund to channel aid to the West Bank and Gaza Strip. That fund will grant the Palestinian Authority a momentary reprieve. But by sidestepping the Hamas government and dealing only with President Mahmoud Abbas, the deal leaves the Palestinian prime minister and his cabinet hunting for money of their own.
The window to push Hamas to moderate its position is still open. If Arab governments are able to get their money to the Palestinian Authority, they stand a good chance of being able to compel Hamas to embrace the 2002 Arab peace initiative, abandon its charter and recognize Israel. But if Iran figures out how to get money to the Palestinian Authority before Arab countries do, Hamas will be in no position to say no, and Iran certainly won't urge it to recognize Israel.
Geoff D. Porter is the acting director of the Eurasia Group's division for the Middle East and Africa.
AM - Palestine faces fuel shortage
12 May , 2006
Reporter: Mark Willacy
AM
PETER CAVE: To the Middle East now, and the diplomatic and financial squeeze on the Palestinian Authority is now being felt at the petrol pump, with many service stations across the West Bank being forced to close because they've run out of fuel.
The Hamas-run Palestinian Authority complains it can't pay the bills because the international community has cut financial aid, and Israel is refusing to hand over Palestinian tax revenue.
Middle East Correspondent Mark Willacy reports.
(sound of horns honking)
MARK WILLACY: In Bethlehem, the queue of cars snakes out of the petrol station and winds hundreds of metres down the road.
With fuel fast running out, Palestinian motorists are contemplating new forms of transport.
"We will ride donkeys," says Mufeed Abu Sa'ada. "What else can we do? This is the occupation," he says.
"We have a bit of fuel left," says petrol station owner Riad al-Hayek. "But we expect it all to be gone later today. After that we'll close," he says.
Other gas stations have already begun shutting down – the result of the Israeli supplier cutting off deliveries.
The sole fuel distributor to the Palestinians, the Dor Energy company, says its decision is based on the growing petrol debts of the Palestinian Authority.
The Hamas-run Palestinian Authority says it can't pay, because Israel is withholding tens of millions of dollars of its tax revenue, and because the international community has cut financial aid.
It warns that the fuel shortages could mean that ambulances and hospital generators will stop running, and that food deliveries may be stopped.
Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev says it's not the intention of his government to hurt ordinary Palestinians.
MARK REGEV: The Government of Israel fully supports the beefing-up of humanitarian support for the Palestinian people. The Palestinian people are not our enemy. Our problem is with the extremist Hamas Government. And we will support efforts in the international community, mechanisms, to directly support the Palestinian people by by-passing this Hamas Government.
(sound of protest)
MARK WILLACY: It's not just the fuel bill that the cash-strapped Palestinian Authority can't pay, but also the monthly salaries of 165,000 public servants it employs.
Most haven't been paid for more than two months – teachers like Arwa Houdaly.
ARWA HOUDALY: Please, our ministry, our prime ministry, our president, please stop the hunger and the circumstances which we are facing now.
MARK WILLACY: The United States, Israel and the European Union cut funding to the Palestinian Authority because of the election of Hamas, an Islamist organisation they all denounce as a terrorist group.
But the Palestinian Authority argues that it's ordinary Palestinians who are being hurt most.
This is Mark Willacy in Jerusalem for AM.
The US, UN, EU, and Russia say they will release international aid, but bypass Hamas-led government.
A Palestinian woman receives food supplies donated by the Israeli Islamic movement, in the West Bank city of Jenin May 11, 2006. Israel accepted on Wednesday a decision by major Middle East peace brokers to resume some aid payments to the Palestinians -- a move that could ease intense economic pressure on the Hamas-led government. REUTERS/Abed Omar Qusini
By Ilene R. Prusher, Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor
May 11, 2006
JERUSALEM – With the Palestinian economy lurching toward the breaking point, Israeli officials said Wednesday that they would not oppose a decision by Middle East peacebrokers to resume financial aid to the Palestinian Authority (PA), even though its government is controlled by Hamas.
But the decision Tuesday by the Quartet - the US, the United Nations, European Union, and Russia - to release international aid that has been held since Hamas's election in January is already facing challenges.
While the donor countries want to alleviate suffering and help prevent a total financial breakdown in the PA, most - in particular, the US - say they remain committed to keeping funds out of the hands of Hamas.
"As far as we are concerned, the Quartet's decision to give further humanitarian support to the Palestinian Authority, bypassing the Hamas government, is definitely OK," Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said in an interview on Israel's Army Radio.
Ms. Livni's statement indicated that Israel is willing to accept the fine-tuning of definitions being tested out by the international donor community. This latest plan is intended to separate humanitarian aid from direct budgetary assistance that has been given in the past, which was used to pay salaries of government employees.
As of Wednesday, however, US officials were unsure whether the release of funds would include funding for PA salaries, and pointed out that the statements after Wednesday's Quartet meeting left out all mention of the issue.
"One of the main interests is that the funding not go to Hamas, because that would in fact be a legal problem, at least for us," says Stuart Tuttle, the spokesman of the US embassy in Tel Aviv. Read more...
As Gazans Wait for Aid, Their Situation Is Dire
A gold vendor in the ancient market in the Kisariya district of Gaza City put a piece of jewelry up for sale last week as more was brought in.
By STEVEN ERLANGER
May 11, 2006
The new York Times
GAZA, May 4 — In the gold souk of Kisariya, the oldest part of Gaza City, named after Caesar, the market goes only one way these days. "Everyone is selling — no one is buying," said Rafiq Ayyad, 65, a jeweler and dealer here for 40 years. "I've rarely seen it so bad."
Imad and Sanaa al-Kassar, 23 and 21, were married nine months ago. With Sanaa 6 months pregnant, they came to sell the gold jewelry he gave her for the wedding. "We need the money for the baby," she said. Imad, an employee of the bankrupt and isolated Palestinian Authority, has not been paid in two months.
Zahiya Abu Watfa
Zahiya Abu Watfa, 70, was selling an exquisite bracelet of gold coins that she had owned since 1956. She needs the money for food and to help her children.
Jewelry, like land, is a traditional investment here, one of the last possessions to be sold. But conditions are getting dire for many, with 35 percent of the Gaza Strip's 1.4 million people dependent on salaries from the Palestinian Authority. Credit is exhausted and the economy is slowing down.
Tension is palpable between armed groups of supporters of Hamas, which runs the new government, and Fatah, the faction of the longtime leaders, who lost power in elections in January.
Gazans are wary, watchful and increasingly angry at their plight. For now they are angry at the United States for withholding financial support over the Hamas victory. But their anger may also turn against Hamas, whose refusal to recognize Israel has isolated its government, some Fatah leaders warn.
[Already there have been clashes, which worsened Monday, when three Palestinians died in Fatah-Hamas fighting near Khan Yunis in the south, and continued Tuesday, when 12 Palestinians were wounded, including five schoolchildren and four Fatah members.]
After Hamas took over the Palestinian Authority, Israel stopped transferring $50 million a month in tax and customs revenues, and the United States and European Union cut most of their aid, including budget support, since Hamas is listed as a terrorist group by the United States, the European Union and Israel.
"The Palestinians are furious with the United States, which presses democracy and then punishes us for our free vote," said Ahmed Yousef, a political adviser to Prime Minister Ismail Haniya, a Hamas leader.
"It took the Islamists more than two decades to decide to participate in democratic voting," Mr. Yousef said. "For us it's a big step in the right direction. But this is selective democracy — not what the people decide, but whether their decision fits America or not."
[On Tuesday in New York, the United States and the European Union agreed to create a temporary mechanism, which would bypass the Palestinian Authority, to provide medical and other aid, plus some European money for salaries. But the monthly salary bill is $120 million, and while March salaries may be paid, there is little for April, let alone May. The entire European Union yearly aid for the Palestinians would cover about 10 percent of the annual salary bill.]
Mr. Yousef echoed Mr. Haniya's conviction that the Palestinians would stand by Hamas, preserve their dignity and live, if necessary, "on olives and zatar," a local spice of sumac and sesame.
But Talal Okal, a political scientist at Al Azhar University here, is not so sure how long Palestinians will remain steadfast. "When a father cannot feed his family, he may ask himself whether he should starve for the dignity of Hamas," Mr. Okal said. "The dignity of the family may be more important than the dignity of Hamas. Gaza is very fragile right now."
America's policy, Mr. Okal said, "is morally ambiguous, trying to push Hamas" to change "by creating what could be a human catastrophe."
Still, he said, it may work. "Hamas will remain in the government and have to change its political program or leave the government, which I believe it will not do," he said. "Hamas in government is the beginning of a bigger Islamic project in the region, and Hamas believes that the United States doesn't mind experimenting a little if Hamas can become a more moderate model for the region."
The Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, who also leads Fatah, is trying to be a bridge between Hamas and the world, and between Hamas and Fatah.
But he is also being pressed by Muhammad Dahlan, the local Fatah leader here, who also controls the Preventive Security police here, to confront Hamas, say Palestinians and Western diplomats. Mr. Dahlan did not respond to requests for an interview. At the same time, Mr. Abbas recently warned Mr. Haniya publicly that the president had the power to dismiss the government. Read more...
Iran to the rescue?
Geoff D. Porter The New York Times
MAY 11, 2006
International Herald Tribune Opinion
NEW YORK At the very moment when the United States and European Union are pushing for a United Nations Security Council resolution to hem in Iran, their policies toward the Hamas-led Palestinian Authority are forcing Iran and the Palestinians closer together. That prospect is especially alarming under the current leaders in Tehran and Ramallah.
In the past, sectarian and ethnic differences prevented the Palestinians and Iranians from forging an effective relationship. Today, though, the threats of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran to eradicate Israel dovetail with the Hamas charter, which denies Israel's right to exist. The closer Tehran draws to the Palestinian Authority, the likelier it is that the Iranians would retaliate against any American military action on their territory by encouraging Hamas to attack Israel. Arab countries allied to the United States would be happy to counter Iranian influence on Hamas, but they face significant obstacles.
Shortly after Hamas took power in March, the United States and European Union cut aid to the Palestinian Authority on the ground that it was now governed by a group that had been designated a terrorist organization. That left the authority unable to pay its 165,000 employees and helped produce a crisis in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
Immediately, Hamas officials fanned out across the Arab world to drum up funds. Oil- and gas-rich Algeria, Qatar and Saudi Arabia committed money. The Arab League also promised financial support at its March meeting. But no funds were actually transferred to the Palestinian Authority, because the banks handling the contributions are wary of running afoul of American laws against financing terrorist organizations.
Iran, too, pledged to send money to the Palestinian Authority after a high-level meeting with two Hamas leaders in Syria. And the Iranian commitment is different from the Arab one. Although Ahmadinejad does not steer Iran's foreign policy, his ideological rhetoric frames policy debates and could compel Iran's Guardian Council to give Hamas much more money than Arab countries are willing to contribute.
Moreover, because Iran disregards American restrictions on financing terrorist groups, its money stands a good chance of actually reaching the Palestinian Authority, but for one impediment: no Iranian banks have offices in the Palestinian Authority, nor do any Palestinian banks have representation in Iran. This is a technical hurdle, easily overcome through the use of off-shore banks that could handle Iranian funds destined for the Palestinian Authority.
On Tuesday, the United States endorsed a European proposal to establish a fund to channel aid to the West Bank and Gaza Strip. That fund will grant the Palestinian Authority a momentary reprieve. But by sidestepping the Hamas government and dealing only with President Mahmoud Abbas, the deal leaves the Palestinian prime minister and his cabinet hunting for money of their own.
The window to push Hamas to moderate its position is still open. If Arab governments are able to get their money to the Palestinian Authority, they stand a good chance of being able to compel Hamas to embrace the 2002 Arab peace initiative, abandon its charter and recognize Israel. But if Iran figures out how to get money to the Palestinian Authority before Arab countries do, Hamas will be in no position to say no, and Iran certainly won't urge it to recognize Israel.
Geoff D. Porter is the acting director of the Eurasia Group's division for the Middle East and Africa.
AM - Palestine faces fuel shortage
12 May , 2006
Reporter: Mark Willacy
AM
PETER CAVE: To the Middle East now, and the diplomatic and financial squeeze on the Palestinian Authority is now being felt at the petrol pump, with many service stations across the West Bank being forced to close because they've run out of fuel.
The Hamas-run Palestinian Authority complains it can't pay the bills because the international community has cut financial aid, and Israel is refusing to hand over Palestinian tax revenue.
Middle East Correspondent Mark Willacy reports.
(sound of horns honking)
MARK WILLACY: In Bethlehem, the queue of cars snakes out of the petrol station and winds hundreds of metres down the road.
With fuel fast running out, Palestinian motorists are contemplating new forms of transport.
"We will ride donkeys," says Mufeed Abu Sa'ada. "What else can we do? This is the occupation," he says.
"We have a bit of fuel left," says petrol station owner Riad al-Hayek. "But we expect it all to be gone later today. After that we'll close," he says.
Other gas stations have already begun shutting down – the result of the Israeli supplier cutting off deliveries.
The sole fuel distributor to the Palestinians, the Dor Energy company, says its decision is based on the growing petrol debts of the Palestinian Authority.
The Hamas-run Palestinian Authority says it can't pay, because Israel is withholding tens of millions of dollars of its tax revenue, and because the international community has cut financial aid.
It warns that the fuel shortages could mean that ambulances and hospital generators will stop running, and that food deliveries may be stopped.
Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev says it's not the intention of his government to hurt ordinary Palestinians.
MARK REGEV: The Government of Israel fully supports the beefing-up of humanitarian support for the Palestinian people. The Palestinian people are not our enemy. Our problem is with the extremist Hamas Government. And we will support efforts in the international community, mechanisms, to directly support the Palestinian people by by-passing this Hamas Government.
(sound of protest)
MARK WILLACY: It's not just the fuel bill that the cash-strapped Palestinian Authority can't pay, but also the monthly salaries of 165,000 public servants it employs.
Most haven't been paid for more than two months – teachers like Arwa Houdaly.
ARWA HOUDALY: Please, our ministry, our prime ministry, our president, please stop the hunger and the circumstances which we are facing now.
MARK WILLACY: The United States, Israel and the European Union cut funding to the Palestinian Authority because of the election of Hamas, an Islamist organisation they all denounce as a terrorist group.
But the Palestinian Authority argues that it's ordinary Palestinians who are being hurt most.
This is Mark Willacy in Jerusalem for AM.
posted by HRM Deborah of Israel and the Messenger of Peace at 8:02 PM
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