RAMALLAH, Palestine, Dec 30 (NNN-MA’AN) – Palestine slammed Israel’s decision to freeze millions of dollars from Palestinian tax revenues it collects, on behalf of the Palestinians.
“The Israeli government’s decision to withhold 150 million shekels (43.4 million U.S. dollars) from Palestine’s tax revenues, is a blatant act of theft and political extortion,” said Hanan Ashrawi, member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO).
Ashrawi described the move as “a criminal act of collective punishment, exacted for cynical domestic Israeli political reasons.”
“By this act of theft, families of the victims of the Israeli occupation are punished, and forced into poverty, collectively. In the context of the current domestic political stalemate, Israel is intensifying its violations against the Palestinian people,” she said in a statement.
However, she reiterated that, the Palestinian leadership will not stop paying allocations to families of the vulnerable social classes.
“The Palestinian leadership will not succumb to this political and financial aggression, and will persist in discharging its duties towards all segments of the Palestinian people,” she said.
Israel said, it will freeze 43 million dollars from the tax revenues it collects on behalf of the Palestinians, which is the amount the Palestinian government pays monthly to the families of those killed or imprisoned by Israel.
In July last year, Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, passed a law that allows Israeli authorities to withhold an amount equal to payments to families of Palestinians killed or imprisoned by Israel.
In Oct, Palestine accepted to receive payment of tax revenues collected by Israel on its behalf, after rejecting deducted money transfers by Israel, for eight months.– NNN-MA’AN