800 million-shekel Israeli loan to PA based on lies, report shows

Israel agreed to help the PA out of its financial difficulties with a loan of 800 million shekels.

By Josh Plank, World Israel News

Palestinian Authority (PA) first quarter revenues are 47 percent higher than last year despite official warnings of a corona-induced financial crisis, which led Israel to lend the PA 800 million shekels, according to a report published by Palestinian Media Watch (PMW).

PA Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh told PA daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida on March 29, “Since the wheels of production, import, and consumption have stopped, there will be a large drop of more than 50% in the PA’s revenues.”

“The international aid will decrease because the entire world is in crisis, and therefore we will work according to an emergency austerity budget by reducing the expenses as much as possible,” Shtayyeh said.

Israel agreed to help the PA out of its financial difficulties with a loan of 800 million shekels.

However, the PMW report, based on financial reports published by the PA Ministry of Finance, found that not only was there no drop in the PA’s revenues in the first quarter of 2020, but it was higher than revenues in the previous two years and more than 1.2 billion shekels more than last year.

Throughout the period of alleged budget shortcomings, the PA continued to pay its employees’ salaries in full. The PA also continued to give priority to payments to terrorists and the families of dead terrorists ahead of welfare payments and the salaries of teachers and other public employees.

The Choosing Life Forum, made up of families victimized by terrorism, and the Lavi organization for Citizens’ Rights and Proper Administration petitioned the High Court in an effort to halt the transfer of funds. The court is expected to hear the petition on Sunday.

Families of terror victims continued to protest after filing the petition. Many of the members of the Choosing Life Forum posted videos of themselves on the internet, holding up large images of 800-million-shekel checks made out directly to the murderers of their family members.

“The Israeli government gives 800 million shekels of our tax money to the PA. Meanwhile, the PA insists on paying salaries to terrorists every month. As a result, I pay the salary of the murderer of my daughter Shir,” said Meirav Hajaj, whose daughter was killed by a terrorist in 2017. “Me and you pay the salaries of our child’s murderer.”