Bezalel Smotrich
Bezalel SmotrichNoam Revkin Fenton/Flash 90

The Palestinian Authority plans, with the help of Norway, to circumvent Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich's decision to delay the transfer of approximately 70 million shekels of the funds that Israel collects on behalf of the Palestinian Authority.

Sources with knowledge of the details in Ramallah told Channel 12 News on Saturday, "The idea is that the Norwegian government will transfer the 70 million shekels to the Palestinian Authority and at the same time ask Israel for guarantees to return the money."

Smotrich responded to the report and stated, "Not a single shekel will go to Gaza, and on my watch, the days of Israel transferring money so that the Palestinian Authority can transfer salaries to the families of Nazi terrorists are over.”

“Last month the Cabinet accepted my position and deducted hundreds of millions of shekels that they wanted to transfer to Gaza and the terrorists, the same thing happened this month, and the same will be the case in the future. Not directly nor through any other party, period,” he added.