Prime Minister Ehud Olmert will meet with his cabinet on Sunday and ask them to approve the release of $600 million of frozen tax monies to the Palestinian Authority. Sources close to Olmert explained that the release of the taxes is meant to strengthen PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas and his new government.
The money was collected from the wages of Arab residents of PA-controlled areas who work for Israeli employers. It was not released for several months in order to prevent it from going to Hamas, which at that time led the PA together with Fatah.
The money was collected from the wages of Arab residents of PA-controlled areas who work for Israeli employers. It was not released for several months in order to prevent it from going to Hamas, which at that time led the PA together with Fatah.