The PA is withholding payments to Hamas members in the latest phase of the internal Palestinian struggle.
Hamas lawmakers say they have not received their monthly salaries, which they suspect was a move orchestrated by Palestinian Authority (PA) head Mahmoud Abbas.
Hamas lawmaker Ayman Daraghmeh said Monday that 47 Hamas government members did not receive their June salaries and were told by the ministry of finance that it was due to “orders from above.”
Salaries were not paid to Hamas lawmakers based in the Judea and Samaria area. Payments to Hamas lawmakers in Gaza have been suspended since 2007, when the terror group violently overtook the coastal territory from Abbas’ rival Fatah party.
The move comes a day after 227 Hamas members released from Israeli prisons did not receive their monthly stipends paid to Palestinian terrorists.
Abbas is under pressure from the US and Israel to halt monthly payments to thousands of current and former prisoners held for acts of terrorism. Israel says the stipends encourage and promote terrorism, while the Palestinians claim they are welfare payments.
However, Abbas did continue to pay stipends to terrorists from his Fatah faction, which means the move is not related to the pressure but, rather, is part of an ongoing power struggle between the rival Palestinian factions.
These measures are the latest among several taken by Abbas in an attempt to weaken Hamas and gain control of Gaza.
As is often the case, the struggle comes at the expense of the locals.
By: World Israel News Staff and AP