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Thursday, June 13, 2024
US official: Netanyahu refusal to release PA tax funds due to pressure from right
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleJacob Magid is The Times of Israel's US bureau chief
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu skirted a request from US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to release hundreds of millions of shekels that Israel is withholding from the Palestinian Authority because he doesn’t want to risk a spat with far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a US official tells The Times of Israel.
Blinken raised the issue during their Sunday meeting in Jerusalem, but Netanyahu avoided giving a commitment that he would follow through, the officials say, confirming a report in the Axios news site.
Smotrich has been withholding the tax revenues since May, with US officials and the Israeli security establishment fearing that it could lead to the collapse of the already cash-strapped PA.
The tax revenues make up roughly 70 percent of the PA’s annual budget.
The Times of Israel Community.