JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel says it will resume the transfer Palestinian tax revenues that it has been withholding as punishment for unilateral Palestinian actions.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Friday the decision was made following the recommendation of Israel’s security establishment and because of humanitarian considerations.
Earlier this year, Israel withheld tax transfers it collects for the cash-strapped government of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas after he joined the International Criminal Court – a move potentially paving the way for a war crimes investigation of Israel.
That and other moves prompted Abbas to complain that Israel had eroded the authority of his self-rule government in the West Bank to the point where it has “no real power here over anything.” Netanyahu says in the current Mideast climate Israel must act “responsibly and thoughtfully.”
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