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| Israel-Palestine-Jordan |
| Hamas FM returns to Gaza with 20 million dollars |
| 2006-06-14 |
| Quick side trip to Switzerland, Mahmud? GAZA CITY (AFP) - Palestinian foreign minister Mahmud al-Zahar, who has been abroad raising money for the Hamas-led government, returned to Gaza with millions of dollars in cash, officials said. I'm back! With Zahar arrived at the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip carrying four suitcases stuffed with 20 million dollars, an official at the Palestinian Authority presidency said. Now there's a hit waiting to happen. He declared the money to customs officials upon arrival at the terminal and in conjunction with president Mahmud Abbas's office, the decision was taken to transfer the money to the finance ministry, the source said. Yeah, the...finance ministry! That's it! Zahar had on Wednesday been scheduled to hold talks with senior officials in Egypt en route back to Gaza after an extended overseas tour in which he has sought to drum up political and financial support for the Hamas government. On Tuesday, he was in Damascus where he met Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem and on Saturday in Iran to meet Iranian counterpart Manouchehr Mottaki. The source in Abbas's office said that the cash was in the president's Gaza City office and would be transferred to the finance ministry. Yeah. Transferred. Ummmmmmm...soon. Hamas's chief spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri, who was last month caught trying to smuggle hundreds of thousands of euros into Gaza, said Zahar's money would be handed over to the finance ministry and used to break the effects of the siege. "We want to break the inhuman policy against the Palestinian people because we are making all efforts to bring in the money from the governments. "The money that Dr Zahar has brought in will form part of the government's efforts to break the siege," he said, unable to confirm the sums involved. Well isn't that convienient. A spokesman for the EU monitors at the Rafah terminal could confirm only that Zahar had crossed the border, leaving behind various pieces of luggage that were being processed by the Palestinian presidential guard and customs. Probably their cut of the action. "The minister of foreign affairs crossed the border 10 minutes ago. A convoy of four vehicles was waiting for him and he has jumped into one of the two vehicles which has already departed," Julio de la Guardia said. Getaway driver. No Fatah scoop this time. This one's all ours... He told AFP that the matter of his luggage was being dealt with by the presidential guard and customs officers given that the European border guard was only at Rafah to monitor procedures. Duuuuuuh...yup. The Palestinian Authority has been teetering on the brink of bankruptcy ever since the European Union and United States suspended direct aid over the ruling Hamas movement's refusal to recognise Israel and renounce violence. On May 19, Abu Zuhri was caught trying to smuggle 639,000 euros (816,000 dollars) into Gaza at the Rafah terminal where the money was impounded by the Palestinian customs authorities. At the time Abu Zuhri told reporters the money, stuffed into a belt, was bequests from Palestinian expatriates to help the cash-squeezed local populace, which has been suffocated by Western aid cuts since Hamas took office. The Hamas government has been facing fiscal meltdown since taking office in March and the vast majority of the 160,000 people on the Palestinian Authority payroll have been paid since February owing to the EU and US aid cuts. 20mil/160000=$125. That'll solve everything. |
| Posted by:tu3031 |
| #9 Hey! Where's my cut? |
| Posted by: Sura Arafat 2006-06-14 17:53 |
| #8 That's less than $10 per Paleo? |
| Posted by: Kalle 2006-06-14 17:13 |
| #7 Still you got to like a government that's on a pay as you |
| Posted by: 6 2006-06-14 16:04 |
| #6 Euros or USD? |
| Posted by: Seafarious 2006-06-14 14:46 |
| #5 Slightly OT, but did they ever issue those checks they promised their minions for back salaries? Or are they just going to hand out cold cash now? |
| Posted by: Desert Blondie 2006-06-14 14:42 |
| #4 Hamas claims it has raised more than $60 million from Muslim and Arab countries. But U.S. pressure on international banks has prevented them from transferring the money into the Palestinian territories. Hmmmmmmmm...a little short there, Mahmud? |
| Posted by: tu3031 2006-06-14 12:53 |
| #3 He better head back to Switzerland again with 4 empty suitcases and bring some more moolah home. Watch out for bystanders with shifty eyes, though. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2006-06-14 12:02 |
| #2 This won't even cover the damage done to parliament buildings while he was gone. He comes back further behind than he was when he left. |
| Posted by: DoDo 2006-06-14 11:48 |
| #1 20 million won't last them a week. If they have been in the red since feb. I can't figure how they have made it this long. Must have found a way to skim the humanitarian aid. |
| Posted by: bigjim-ky 2006-06-14 11:17 |