Only one day after the terrorist attack in Tel Aviv, in which a Jew was murdered, the cabinet convened on Sunday to discuss relief measures for the Palestinian Authority, in accordance with the recommendation of the Ministry of Defense and the promises that Israel gave to the United States.
Although the relief measures were planned a long time ago, the timing of the discussion upset some of the ministers.
Among the decisions made: Expanding the hours of operation at the Allenby crossing and equating of tolls, with the aim of allowing Palestinian Arabs to receive money from the activity at the crossing. It was also decided to promote an industrial area in Tarqumiyah, near Hebron.
It was also decided in the discussion to freeze the tax obligations of the PA in Israel for one year. At the moment there is a dispute as to the estimated value, but it can be assumed that it would be a respectable amount of money. Although there has not yet been an official vote, the cabinet is expected to approve these decisions already during the week.
Kan 11 News reported that, during the meeting, there was an argument between Ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben Gvir, who expressed their opposition to the relief measures, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.
Smotrich opposed the move mainly due to his position as Finance Minister, who will need to sign some off on these decisions. Ben Gvir, on the other hand, protested the timing of the discussion, only a day after the attack in Tel Aviv.