|
U.S. Fears for Cash-Strapped Palestinian Authority
[AnNahar] The United States voiced fears Thursday that the Paleostinian Authority may be teetering on the brink of collapse because of a lack of funding, as Israel withholds taxes and donor aid stalls.
"It's true we're very concerned about the continued viability of the Paleostinian Authority if they do not receive funds soon," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki ...a valley girl who woke up one morning and found she was spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of State... told news hounds. Such funds would include the resumption of monthly Israeli transfers of Paleostinian tax revenues, or additional donor assistance, she said. In January, Israel suspended $127 million in tax revenues which should have been transferred to the Paleostinian Authority as punishment for its move to join the  International Criminal Court... where Milosevich died of old age before being convicted ... (ICC). The Paleostinians' membership in the ICC, which takes effect on April 1, sets the scene for potential legal action against Israelis for alleged war crimes, in a move which has infuriated the Jewish state. But the Paleostinian economy has also been hit by a slowing of aid funds, as donors have failed to make good on $5.4 billion promised at a Cairo conference in October to help rebuild the impoverished Gazoo Strip after last year's 50-day war. The IMF reported last month that the war between Israel and Gazoo drove the Paleostinian economy of Gazoo and the West Bank into its first contraction since 2006. Psaki warned that if the Paleostinian Authority ceased security cooperation with Israel "or even decides to disband, as they have said they may do as early as the first week of March," it could trigger a dire situation. "We could be faced with a crisis that could gravely impact both the Paleostinians and the Israelis, with potentially serious ripple effects...," she said. U.S. officials have been in talks with counterparts from the EU, UN, Russia and the Arab League ...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing... to discuss the situation. U.S. Secretary of State John F. I was in Vietnam, you knowKerry Former Senator-for-Life from Massachussetts, self-defined war hero, speaker of French, owner of a lucky hat,conqueror of Cambodia, and current Secretary of State... met Thursday with the head of the vaporous Arab League, Nabil al-Arabi, praising him as a "solid partner" in many issues including the Middle East grinding of the peace processor. Israeli-Paleostinian talks have stalled since Kerry's dogged bid for a comprehensive peace treaty collapsed spectacularly in April. Psaki acknowledged that given the situation it "would not seem possible to get further assistance to the Paleostinian Authority through Congress in the near future." Washington was warning partners "about the importance of stability in the region and the implications that go well beyond security," she added. "Hundreds of thousands of students could be without teachers, hospitals could cease to function... The cost to both Paleostinians and Israelis could be immense in both financial and human terms." Posted by: trailing wife 2015-02-21 |
|
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=411239 |