US, EU Resume Aid to Palestinian Gov't

US, EU Resume Aid to Palestinian Gov't

IslamOnline.net & News Agencies

"I told the prime minister that we want to work with his government and support his efforts to enforce the rule of law and to ensure a better life for the Palestinian people," Rice said. WASHINGTON/LUXEMBOURG — One day after Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas formed an emergency government without rival Hamas, the US and EU decided on Monday, June 18, to normalize ties with the new cabinet and resume the frozen direct aid. "I told him the US would resume full assistance to the Palestinian government and normal government-to-government contacts," Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice told reporters after phoning Palestinian Premier Salam Fayyad, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP). "I told the prime minister that we want to work with his government and support his efforts to enforce the rule of law and to ensure a better life for the Palestinian people." Bypassing parliament, where Hamas enjoys a comfortable majority, Abbas swore in a new emergency cabinet on Sunday, June 17, under West-educated economist Salam Fayyad. The move followed a decision by Abbas to sack the three-month Hamas-led national unity government and declare emergency across the Palestinian territories poised to end its 15-month aid embargo. The new emergency cabinet does not include any Hamas members. The American decision came after hours after a similar one was made by Euroean foreign ministers in Luxembourg. "The EU will resume normal relations with the Palestinian Authority immediately," the ministers said in a statement. The ministers also agreed to "resume direct financial support to the government" and undertake "intensive efforts to build the institutions of the future Palestinian state". The 27-nation bloc -- the biggest donor to the Palestinians – and the US froze ties with the government and suspended direct aid after Hamas swept to power last year through the ballot boxes. Israel also froze hundreds of millions of dollars in taxes and customs revenue collected on behalf of the Palestinian Authority after Hamas's electoral victory, greatly exacerbating the economic crisis in the Palestinian territories. Full Support Rice told West-educated Fayyad, a respected economist and former employer of the World Bank, that American money would pour in again. "We intend to lift our financial restrictions on the Palestinian government, which has accepted previous agreements with Israel and rejects the path of violence," she said. "This will enable the American people and American financial institutions to resume normal economic and commercial ties with the Palestinian government." The US has outlawed sending any aid to the Palestinians and threatened to punish banks that transfer funds to the Palestinians, leaving millions of dollars donated to the Palestinians by Arabs and Muslims, peoples and government, locked in bank accounts. The announcement on lifting the 15-month embargo on direct aid to the Palestinians was all but certain Monday. "I'll talk to you later," Rice told reporters earlier Monday when asked about that possibility. President George W. Bush on Monday threw his backing behind Abbas during a 15-minute phone call. "The president pledged help and support," White House spokesman Tony Snow said. "President Abbas described the steps that he has taken in the last week forming an emergency government and appointing (Fayyad) as the prime minister," Snow said of the conversation with Bush. "Also he noted that he wanted to resume the political process and open political channels." US Consul General in Jerusalem Jacob Walles said earlier on Monday that Washington would normalize relations with the new government. "I told him that we will re-engage with this government. We will again have a normal relation with this government," he told reporters after a 90-minute meeting with Fayyad. "I told him that the USA supports him."