Israel: PA taxes will pay for arson damage in south

The Israeli prime minister reportedly made preparations to force the Palestinian Authority to cover the damages caused by Gazan kite bombs since the the Hamas-led “March of Return” began.

By: TPS

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instructed the head of the National Security Council, Meir Ben Shabbat, to prepare to dock the Palestinian Authority for the cost of damages caused to farmers along the Gaza border by flammable kites launched from the Strip.

The funds will come from tax Israel collects for the Palestinian Authority under the terms of the 1994 Paris accords signed between the sides as part of the Oslo Peace Accords. Israel collects some $150 million a month on imported goods, constituting some 75% of total tax collection by the PA.

The move comes following weeks of cross border arson attacks using means such as fire bombs attached to kites and kites doused in petrol, set alight and then launched over the border, which have set thousands of acres of mostly wheat crops on fire and caused millions of shekels in damages.

In a bid to put a stop to the arson attacks, Israeli farmers, backed by the Shurat Hadin Israel Law Centers plan to sue Hamas Gaza leader Yahya Sinwar and the terrorist organization’s political leader Ismail Haniyeh for damages at the International Criminal Court in the Hague.