Haaretz
Shvat 22, 5766
WASHINGTON - The United States has asked the
Palestinian Authority to return $50 million in U.S. aid as part of a
review of all U.S. aid for the Palestinians, which began soon after Hamas'
surprise win in elections last month.
State Department spokesman
Sean McCormack said the caretaker government of PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas
had agreed to return the $50 million, which was given to the PA last year
for infrastructure projects after Israel's withdrawal from Gaza and parts
of the West Bank.
"In the interests of seeing that these funds not
potentially make their way into the coffers of a future Palestinian
government (made up of Hamas) ... we have asked for it to be returned and
the Palestinian Authority has agreed," McCormack told reporters.
Over the past decade, the United States has given about $1.5
billion in aid to the Palestinians. Most of that was channeled via
non-governmental organizations.
If passed, new legislation
introduced to Congress several weeks ago will enforce a halt of all U.S.
funding to organizations and institutions related to the PA.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice meanwhile cautioned Iran and
other Middle East powers on Friday of the consequences for the region of
giving money to a Palestinian government led by Hamas. She also expressed
doubt that the militant Islamic group could raise badly needed
international financing unless it changes its policies.
Mideast
implications
"I would hope that any state that is considering
funding Hamas, a Hamas-led government, would think about the implications
of that for the Middle East" and for the goal of peace between Israel and
the Palestinians, Rice said.
In an interview with a panel of Arab
journalists, Rice delivered a new and blunt warning to Iran.
"Iran
has its own troubles with the international community, and it might want
to think twice about enhancing those troubles" by bankrolling Hamas, Rice
said.
Rice's upcoming trip to Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United
Arab Emirates is expected to be dominated by discussion of Hamas' surprise
election victory and the separate issue of Iran's disputed nuclear
program. The Palestinian Authority gets most of its approximately $1.9
billion annual budget from overseas sources. Without money from the United
States, Israel and perhaps Europe, a Hamas-led government would be nearly
broke.
Hamas leaders have said they will look elsewhere for money
and are expected to appeal to Arab states and Iran.
"It will be
very interesting to see if that $1.9 billion is available," Rice said with
evident skepticism.