Foreign Minister Shimon Peres stated this afternoon that Israel would not hand over any funds to the PA, as it is feared that some of the money would be used to pay the salaries of Force 17 terrorists. A senior spokesman for Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, Raanan Gissin, admits that Israel has a legal obligation to repay millions of dollars worth of taxes owed to the Palestinian Authority, but it refuses to subsidize the PA\'s terrorist activities. The U.S. continues to urge Israel to release these taxes to ease the PA\'s economic difficulties - although it insists on a reduction in Palestinian violence as well. Sharon rejected the United States position, saying, \"They [the Palestinians] have property worth over a billion dollars all over the world.\"