Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas instructs his government to return tax money to Israel that the Israeli government transferred to the PA last week.
The money was initially held by Israel to pressure the PA after it signed a unity deal with Hamas in Gaza a year ago.
According to Israel Radio, Abbas says Israel only agreed to transfer a portion of the funds, after deducting monies owed by the PA to Israel for services such as water and electricity.
The PA has been in massive debt and its economy is teetering on the brink of collapse; the government in Jerusalem decided to transfer the funds despite no recent change in the Hamas-Fatah unity deal, as a measure of goodwill following the tension between PM Netanyahu and US President Barack Obama, one of the focal points of which was the stalemate in the peace process.
Abbas demands that Israel transfer the funds in full, and threatens to turn to third-party mediation or to the International Criminal Court at the Hague if Israel refuses.
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From the Liveblog of
Sunday, April 5, 2015
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