Palestinian Foreign Ministry accuses Israel of blocking $1.8bn in tax revenue
Israel, which is responsible for collecting Palestinian import taxes and making monthly transfers to the Palestinian Authority (PA), is holding back about $1.8bn in tax revenue, according to the Palestinian Foreign Ministry.
In a statement, the ministry described Israel’s withholding of the funds as “colonialist, racist political schemes, part of the broader strategy of genocide, displacement and annexation”.
Israel has repeatedly used its control of Palestinian finances to exert pressure or punish the PA.
In January 2023, for instance, Israel’s government withheld $39m in tax revenue from the PA after the authority’s decision to ask the International Court of Justice to rule on the legality of Israel’s decades-long occupation.
Former Israeli PM Olmert accuses Netanyahu of giving cover to far-right settlers
Ehud Olmert, who was Israel’s prime minister from 2006 to 2009, has blamed Netanyahu for not doing more to rein in the Hilltop Youth, a group of far-right Israeli settlers who have been sanctioned by many Western countries, including the US, for their attacks against Palestinians.
“Netanyahu, as prime minister, is giving a hand to the atrocities committed by the Hilltop Youth in the West Bank – and the government is turning a blind eye,” Olmert said in comments carried by Israel’s Army Radio.
The Hilltop Youth has repeatedly carried out acts of violence against Palestinians, including torching Palestinian homes and property.
Last year, Israel’s Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar, whom Netanyahu has since tried to oust, blamed the prime minister and his government for being too lenient with the group and risking further bloodshed.
