Palestinian President Abbas on Gaza: 'We will never give up'
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas stated that the Gaza Strip, currently under Israeli occupation and attacks, is an integral part of the Palestinian state and that its people are an undeniable priority.
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According to the official Palestinian news agency WAFA, Palestinian President Abbasreceived a delegation from the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) in the city of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank.
Abbas said, "The Gaza Strip is an inseparable part of the Palestinian state. Plans by the occupying state (Israel) authorities to separate it or any part of it are unacceptable and cannot be implemented." .
Emphasizing the importance of transferring the Palestinian tax funds seized by Israel to the Palestinian authorities, Abbas stated, "We will never give up on the Gaza Strip, and its people are a priority. The people of the Gaza Strip are the responsibility of the Palestinian state."
Hussein al-Sheikh, Secretary-General of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO),stated on January 21 that the Palestinian Authority was evaluating all options to resolve the current financial crisis following the Israeli cabinet's approval to transfer tax revenues to the Palestinian Authority, excluding the portion allocated for the Gaza Strip.
Stating that they reject Israel's efforts to block the transfer of funds allocated by the Palestinian Authority to the Gaza Strip, al-Sheikh called on the international community to pressure Israel to transfer all of Palestine's funds.
On January 21, the Israeli cabinet approved the transfer of tax revenues to the Palestinian Authority, excluding the share for the blockaded Gaza Strip.
In a report by the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper, "The political-security cabinet, which met at the Kirya Military Base in Tel Aviv, approved a plan regarding the transfer of tax funds to the Palestinian Authority and the transfer of Gaza allocations to Norway." statements were included.
Israel collects customs duties on goods imported by Palestine "on behalf of the Palestinian Authority" and makes an average monthly payment of 190 million dollars to Palestine. These taxes provide a significant source of income for the Palestinian economy.
Israel's far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich had refused to transfer the entirety of tax revenues collected since the start of Israel's attacks on Gaza on October 7 to the Palestinian Authority.
In response, the Palestinian Authority rejected the payment made by Israel in November—which had been reduced by the amount allocated for Gaza (approximately 162 million dollars)—and returned it to Israel.
Due to the deductions, the Palestinian Authority has delayed the payment of civil servant salaries over the last two months and has had to borrow from local banks to pay a portion of the wages.
The Israel-based news site "Walla" reported on December 29 that "the US administration has been pressuring the Israeli government in recent weeks to release the withheld Palestinian tax revenues."