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Abbas freezes W. Bank salaries to pay Gazans
The government of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Sunday it has begun paying compensations to Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, who have lost their homes in the Israeli offensive, by withholding salaries to government workers in both the Israeli-occupied West Bank and the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip. Abbas's prime minister, Salam Fayyad, said he did not have enough money to pay the salaries. The financial trade-off underscored the difficult balancing act facing Fayyad, who, in addition to running a government dependent on foreign aid, wants to take the lead in reconstruction efforts in the Gaza Strip to sideline Hamas. "It is unclear when we will receive money from donors. So I'm not going to put a date on when I can pay salaries," Fayyad told reporters in the West Bank city of Ramallah, where his government is based. Posted by: Fred 2009-02-16 |
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