Report: U.S. blocks $200 million in aid to Palestinian Authority

[Jefferson23]

Funding stopped by three congressional committees in response to UN statehood bid, according to report by U.K.'s Independent newspaper; PA calls move 'collective punishment.'

By Haaretz

The United States Congress has blocked nearly $200m in aid to the Palestinians, the U.K’s Independent newspaper reported on Saturday.

The aid, which was destined for projects related to food aid, health care, and state building efforts, was to have been transferred to the Palestinian Authority during the U.S. fiscal year that ends today, according to the report.

However, following what the Independent described as an “unpublicized block” imposed on funding to the Palestinians since August this year, in response to the Palestinian bid for statehood at the UN, the remainder of the aid allocated to the Palestinian Authority for the current financial year will not be transferred.

The Independent reported that the block by three Congressional committees has been in force since August 18, when it was formally notified that USAID, the U.S. government aid agency, wanted to transfer the remaining $192m funding for the current fiscal year.

in full: http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/report-u-s-blocks-200-million-in-aid-to-palestinian-authority-1.387480

[xchrom]

1. the squeeze is on in ernest. nt

[Jefferson23]

3. It certainly is and the fair broker for peace has spoken their message to the world. n/t

[oberliner]

2. Peace is surely on the horizon

2012 should be a banner year for all.

[azurnoir]

5. especially those in Israel who need cheaper housing the 5000 or so new settlement units

should serve them well and once the Palestinians realize reality that they have no hope and simply give up peace will rein all around eh?

[oberliner]

8. Exactly

The housing protests seem to have dissipated of late.

[Donald Ian Rankin]

18. Please tell me you're joking? N.T.

[oberliner]

20. I am hopeful that 2012 will be a very significant year

I'd like to believe that positive change is coming.

[Donald Ian Rankin]

21. I'd *like* to believe that too.

But

:-In an election year, there's little hope for American pressure on Israel - both parties will be even more desperate than usual to prove that they support Israel, no matter what it does.

:-We have the most right-wing Israeli government for a long, long time.

:-The absence of any hope for a peace process makes it easier for Hamas to sell the idea that violence against Israel is a better chance than negotiations.

:-The longer that goes on without elections in Palestine, the more Abbas' legitimacy is undermined (although of course there may be elections, and Abbas may win them).

I think the most likely significance for 2012 will be as the year when people finally start to give up on the 2-state solution, sadly.

[oberliner]

23. In response to your points

1. America's involvement will be pretty hands off - much bigger problems to worry about here as far as most Americans are concerned - which may, in fact, be for the best.

2. Right wing governments are often more able to make peace than left wing ones. Sharon pulled the settlements out of Gaza. Not sure a LW coalition could've pulled that off.

3. I think there is more hope, thanks to what is going on at the UN, and that Hamas is showing itself to be less and less an attractive option as time goes on (polls I have seen do seem to bear this out).

4. I think the lack of elections also speaks poorly for Hamas, not Abbas. Abbas has called for elections repeatedly only to be rebuffed by Hamas leadership who refuse to participate. I also think Abbas's profile has been raised by his actions in the UN.

And to your last comment, there is no other solution besides the 2-state solution, and I think we are closer to that now than ever before.

[azurnoir]

4. well this is not the first time humanitarian aid has been blocked by law makers

but it does show the total hypocrisy in this country blocking food and medical aid to Palestinian Women, Children and Men both Gay and Straight, resembles the same technique used an the people of Gaza and we know how well that worked out

[Jefferson23]

6. Bill Clinton's remarks on US relationship with Israel.

Abbas is punished by $200m cut in aid from US

By Donald Macintyre in Jerusalem


Saturday, 1 October 2011


The United States Congress has blocked nearly $200m in aid for the Palestinians, threatening projects such as food aid, health care, and support for efforts to build a functioning state.


The decision to delay the payments runs counter to the wishes of the Obama administration and reflects Congressional anger at Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's so far unrealised pursuit of Fatah-Hamas reconciliation and statehood recognition at the UN.

The freezing of the funds, which were to have been dispersed in the US fiscal year that ends today, is the most tangible sign yet of the seriousness of Congressional leaders' threats of an even wider halt to funding in the coming year if Mr Abbas continues with his actions at the UN. It was strongly condemned yesterday by the Palestinian Authority.

There have been persistent demands in Congress to withhold up to $600m – the average amount given by the US in bilateral assistance to the West Bank and Gaza every year since 2008 – in the next financial year over the issue.

The administration remains, as does Congress, opposed to the Palestinians' application for full UN membership, which Mr Abbas submitted last week. But it argues that assistance to the Palestinian people is what a US official described as "an essential part of the US commitment to a secure future and two-state solution for Palestinians".

Former President Bill Clinton, among others, this month warned legislators to leave the issue of aid to the administration, adding: "Everybody knows the US Congress is the most pro-Israel parliamentary body in the world. They don't have to demonstrate that."

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/abbas-is-punished-by-200m-cut-in-aid-from-us-2363976.html

on edit for clarity.

[azurnoir]

10. it makes no sense to do this if the objective is really peace

this move will do nothing to advance peace and could be seen as punishing nonviolent action

[Jefferson23]

11. Of course, and will be received by the majority of the world as such imo. Looking

at Bill Clinton's statement, "Everybody knows the US Congress is the most pro-Israel parliamentary body in the world. They don't have to demonstrate that."



This seems like another finger pointing at the conflict that does not involve the problem being the Palestinians. His first
recently pointing to Netanyahu and now this, the reference to the "devotion" is obvious,.."his use of "everybody knows, you don't have to
take money away from the PA to prove this, no one else on the planet would think you were less devoted to Israel by allowing
a lousy 200 million to stay in place. lol, I like that he said it, and the way he said it.

[Jefferson23]

7. Punitive measures in response for non-violent gestures:

We are the victims of collective punishment, say Palestinians

The Palestinian leadership yesterday accused the US Congress of inflicting "collective punishment" upon its people by holding up almost $200m in aid earmarked for the West Bank and Gaza by the Obama administration.


The freeze on funds earlier allocated for the financial year which ends today is the first concrete Congressional reprisal against Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to come to light since he angered US legislators by pursuing his application for full UN membership last week.

The unpublicised block has been in force since August and was imposed in response to the then planned UN recognition bid and to earlier – so far fruitless – efforts to effect reconciliation between Mr Abbas's own Fatah faction and Hamas.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/we-are-the-victims-of-collective-punishment-say-palestinians-2363998.html

[Jefferson23]

9. Heavy-handed threats to cut aid to the Palestinians

if Mahmoud Abbas went ahead with a bid for UN statehood were bad enough. That the US Congress is now putting such bullying tactics into practice is shameful.


As this newspaper reveals today, just days after Mr Abbas lodged his application at the UN, Congress is blocking $200m worth of aid to the impoverished region. The move should be universally condemned.

The most compelling argument is one of common decency. While $200m may be chicken feed in the context of Washington's multi-billion-dollar aid budget, such sums go a long way in the impoverished Palestinian territories. The funding block will hit a string of vital state-building efforts – from the supplies for the World Food Programme, to teacher training schemes, to major infrastructure projects.

If the quality of life of ordinary Palestinians is not sufficient reason for censure, there is also a broader issue of regional stability. Anything which stirs up frustrations by undermining public services or, worse, which directly jeopardises the funding of the security services is playing with fire. And not just for the Palestinians. Any increase in lawlessness in the West Bank has an immediate impact on Israel.

Members of Congress may fail to grasp the impact of their actions, but the point is not lost on either the White House or the Israeli establishment. The US President has so far distanced himself from the aid issue; and earlier in the summer no less a figure than the Israeli Prime Minister urged congressional supporters not to block aid to the Palestinians.

Apparently the message is yet to get through. Worryingly, hints that the Jewish vote may be wavering from its traditional Democratic position leave the US President even less room to manoeuvre than usual. No matter. Both the White House and Israel itself must put every possible pressure on Congress to abandon a punitive stance that is counterproductive and cruel in equal measure.

http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/leading-articles/leading-article-unjust-punishment-of-the-palestinians-2364013.html

[Violet_Crumble]

12. I heard that Obama's trying to unblock this act of idiocy...

Is that true? I don't understand how it works over there, but does he have the power to overturn this?

Gotta love those forward 'thinkers' of the US Congress. It makes me wonder if they have any ability to think about the consequences of what they do, because in this case they certainly aren't thinking of the best interests of Israel (it's clear that they never think about the best interests of the Palestinians and don't feel they need to). If the Palestinian economy collapses and the US trained and funded security forces fall apart, that's definately not in Israel's interests at all. Not to mention the revulsion I feel (unlike the US Congress, but like most of the rest of the world I am concerned about the Palestinian people) that they're targeting humanitarian aid and aid for state-building efforts...

[Jefferson23]

14. I believe Obama does not want this, correct. Bill Clinton has also

weighed in on the proposed threat, and not in support. I posted this as to the publication and the reference to an
"unpublished block". There may be a good chance this is another level added to the threat already posed to Abbas, I can
only speculate of course. I suppose the point was to sound serious, and Abbas has already commented that while in NY
there were all kinds of threats.

On the other hand, this could be used as a threat they may already know is a useless one,( Abbas won't concede) and when they do not
enforce it, they look like reasonable politicians?


There is support for the funding to the PA for security coming from Pro Israeli supporters, but the humanitarian aid
could be split apart from the money normally alloted. But there seems to be disagreement about that too.


snip* Elliott Abrams, a former aide to US President George W. Bush now at the Council on Foreign Relations, said "there are grave doubts about significant cuts in aid to the Palestinian Authority" within American Jewish organizations.

"The security assistance case is more obvious because this ... has been in our national interest and it has also helped Israel a good deal," said Abrams, who is to testify on the issue before the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Wednesday.

"But the doubts extend to the nonsecurity aid as well because the question is: what will happen if the PA collapses? Won't that simply create greater and more difficult responsibilities for Israel?" he added.



snip* Abraham Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League, told Reuters that no one wanted to see security aid to the Palestinian Authority get cut but that he believed the Palestinians should pay a price for ignoring US views.


Foxman suggested the Palestinians and Congress may both be posturing and that it was important to see how things play out at the United Nations as well as after any UN action.

"It may be posturing on both sides," Foxman told Reuters. "But I certainly understand the anger in Congress. You ignore us and then you want us to continue giving you aid?"

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=420020


As far as I know, Obama could use his veto power if he can't persuade the Congress.

on edit/spelling.

[Violet_Crumble]

13. Where did the Repubs get with their planned Resolution approving annexation of the West Bank?

U.S. Republicans submit resolution supporting Israel's right to annex West Bank

U.S. Representative Joe Walsh (R-IL), introduced on Monday a resolution (with 30 co-sponsors) to support Israel’s right to annex the West Bank in the event that the Palestinian Authority continues to push for vote at the United Nations.

“We’ve got what I consider to be a potential slap in the face coming up with the vote in the UN, which is absolutely outrageous,” Walsh told Politico website last July.

He was quoted as saying that "it’s clear that the United States needs to make a very strong statement. I would argue that the president should make this statement, but he’s not capable of making it. So, the House needs to make this statement, if the continues down this road of trying to get recognition of statehood, the U.S. will not stand for it. And we will respect Israel’s right to annex Judea and Samaria.”

http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/u-s-republicans-submit-resolution-supporting-israel-s-right-to-annex-west-bank-1.385394

[Jefferson23]

15. The stupidity and arrogance award, the Republicans win that one often. n/t

[Jefferson23]

16. U.S. conditions aid to Palestinians on repeal of their UN statehood bid

Congress follows through on earlier warnings issued before Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas officially submitted application for membership in United Nations.

By Natasha Mozgovaya


WASHINGTON - Prior to the Palestinian Authority's application last month to the Security Council for full United Nations membership, members from both sides of the U.S. Congress warned the PA leadership that attempts to bypass negotiations with Israel would have implications on American aid to the Palestinians. At a press conference opposite UN headquarters in New York last Monday, members of Congress reiterated the message.

For his part, New York Congressman Gary Ackerman, who is the Ranking Democrat on the House Middle East affairs subcommittee, said: "If are willing to consider putting their future in the hands of the United Nations, perhaps they should think about how much aid their friends at the United Nations will provide to accompany whatever meaningless, one-sided UN resolution they might pass." He added that the move could lead to a complete cut-off of American funding.

A draft American budget for 2012 would condition aid to the Palestinian Authority upon a certification by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton that the Palestinians are no longer attempting to secure unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state. British newspaper The Independent has reported that Congress went a step further and in August, even before the PA's formal application was submitted to the UN, froze funding that had already been budgeted to the Palestinian Authority for 2012.

The decision reportedly held up nearly $200 million, about third of the annual allocation to the PA. The newspaper quoted Palestinian sources as calling the step by Congress "collective punishment." For its part, Saudi Arabia announced about a week and a half ago that it intended to transfer $200 million to the Palestinian Authority in advance of a vote at the UN on recognition of a Palestinian state.

in full: http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/u-s-conditions-aid-to-palestinians-on-repeal-of-their-un-statehood-bid-1.387573

[Donald Ian Rankin]

17. That'll teach them to try non-violent pressure... N.T.

[Jefferson23]

19. They react true to form Donald.

Good to see you posting again.

[Shaktimaan]

30. right

we shouldn't pressure them in any way as long as they manage to refrain from terrorist acts.

:sarcasm:

[Donald Ian Rankin]

32. No, we shouldn't - we should support and encourage the PA, and pressure Israel. N.T.

Right now there's a serious threat of a three-state situation becoming a reality; the best way to undercut Hamas would be to make it possible for the Palestinians to establish a state by peaceful means. That will not be possible without massive pressure on Israel, and pressure on the PA will be counterproductive.

[Jefferson23]

35. IDF commander opposes cutting PA funds

In rare interview to NYT, Brig.-Gen. Nitzan Alon warns against freezing financial aid to Palestinians over push for statehood. 'If there is no political horizon, cooperation is endangered,' he claims

Yitzhak Benhorin Published: 10.13.11, 19:21 / Israel News


WASHINGTON – Judea and Samaria Division Commander Brigadier-General Nitzan Alon, cautioned it would be a mistake to cut off financial aid to the Palestinian Authority over its push for statehood, in an interview to the New York Times on Wednesday.

Alon believes the United States Congress' decision to halt all funding to the PA due to their bid for recognition at the United Nations will lead to regional instability.


“Stability in the region includes the ability of the Palestinian Authority to pay its salaries,” remarked Alon. “Reducing the Palestinians’ ability to pay decreases security. American aid is relevant to this issue.”

It is no secret that Washington was not pleased with the PA's bid to the UN in September and even attempted to thwart it. However the Palestinians were not impressed, as they decided to submit their bid to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. In response, the US congress ruled to freeze millions of dollars originally designated to aid the PA.

in full: http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4134816,00.html

[ensho]

22. kick

nt

[azurnoir]

24. Panetta: Congress decision to freeze PA aid a mistake

US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said Monday that Congress's decision to freeze $200 million in aid to the Palestinians was a mistake. Panetta, who is visiting Israel for the first time since he assumed the role of US defense secretary, also noted that any Israeli strike on Iran must be coordinated with countries in the region.

In a press conference with Minister Ehud Barak at the Defense Ministry offices in Tel Aviv, Panetta said that this, "a critical time," was not the time to withhold funds from the PA. He added that both Israel and the Palestinians benefit from the aid transfer, noting that positive outcomes from the investment had been observed.

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4130484,00.html

[Jefferson23]

26. I'm going to presume Panetta is not giving a nod on Iran..how much crazier

can they make this situation. Don't answer that.

[Jefferson23]

25. U.S. Congress cut in Palestinian aid won't affect statehood bid, PA official says

Referring to reported $200 million fund cut, Palestinian Minister Ali Jarbawi says PA was working toward ending its dependence on foreign aid by 2013.

By Haaretz and Natasha Mozgovaya


A move by U.S. Congress to cut aid to the Palestinian Authority will not hinder Palestinian readiness for statehood, a top PA official said on Monday.

On Saturday, U.K’s Independent newspaper reported that Congress had blocked nearly $200m in aid to the Palestinians over their bid for recognition at the United Nations.

snip* On the subject of the economic crisis plaguing the Palestinian Authority, and its possible effect on the Palestinians' readiness for statehood, Jarbawi stressed the need to separate the PA's financial condition and the readiness of its institutions.

The official also said that the Palestinians were working toward ending their dependence on foreign aid by 2013, adding that the PA still needed aid to help bolster development projects.

http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/u-s-congress-cut-in-palestinian-aid-won-t-affect-statehood-bid-pa-official-says-1.387906

[cqo_000]

27. Arab League says will fund Palestinians after U.S. cuts aid

The head of the Arab League Nabil al-Arabi said Sunday Arab countries would offer financial assistance to the Palestinians instead of the aid which the United States threatened to halt over a Palestinian bid for a state.

"The Arabs will assist the Palestinian Authority. This will be the strongest answer (to the U.S. threat)," al-Arabi told reporters in Cairo after talks with chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat.


http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/arab-league-says-will-fund-palestinians-after-u-s-cuts-aid-1.387715

[Violet_Crumble]

28. That's good to hear. I figured either them or the EU would step in n/t

[Scurrilous]

29. Why Cutting U.S. Aid to Abbas Could Hurt Israel More Than it Hurts Palestinians

<snip>

"This is going to hurt me a lot more than it's going to hurt you" may be a cliche once tossed out by parents about to spank their children, but it could well prove to be the case if Congress proceeds with plans to punish the Palestinians for seeking U.N. recognition by cutting off U.S. aid to the Palestinian Authority (PA).

Listening to the U.S. Congress discussing the Palestinians brings to mind the scene from Monty Python's The Life of Brian, in which the main character's attempt to join the Judean People's Front depends on his answer to the question, "How much do you hate the Romans?" Public displays of affection for Israel have become the sine qua non of winning national political office in the United States, and in the current pre-election season, politicians are seeking to outdo one another in public expressions of outrage at the Palestinians daring to seek recognition at the U.N. GOP presidential hopefuls tumble over one another to denounce President Obama for "throwing Israel under a bus" -- a claim that would come as news to both Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who suggested Obama deserved a medal for his recent U.N. speech; and to the Palestinians, who saw it as confirmation that the U.S. has given up even a pretense at even-handedness.

And this week says a renewed push in Congress to block the transfer of some $200 million in humanitarian support and $150 million in security assistance to the Palestinian Authority, to punish the Palestinians for their insubordination in defying U.S. tutelage.

“Our contributions are our strongest leverage at the U.N., and should be used to stand up for our interests and allies and stop this dangerous Palestinian scheme,” says House Foreign Affairs Committee chair, the Florida Republican Ileana Ros-Lehtinen. And a number of top Democrats have backed her call for an aid cutoff.

But those with a tad more understanding of Middle East realities -- even from Israel's point of view -- are urging the likes of Ros-Lehtinen to curb their enthusiasm, lest they do Israel some real damage in their haste to express their support. Israeli officials have discreetly cautioned against hobbling the PA, and former Bush Administration Mideast point-man Elliott Abrahams, a strong backer of Israel's current government, bluntly told a congressional hearing that starving the Palestinian Authority (PA) of funds is not in Israel's interests, which are actually served by the day-to-day functioning of the PA. It's security forces, for example, do more to protect Israel from attacks by Palestinian militants -- or mass protests -- than they do to protect Palestinians from attacks by Israeli settlers or security forces. "If they were to cut off the Palestinian Authority," Abrahams told the Financial Times (subscription required), "Israel would have to pick up a lot of its responsibilities. So who would they be helping and who would they be hurting?"

Read more: http://globalspin.blogs.time.com/2011/10/10/why-cutting-u-s-aid-to-abbas-could-hurt-israel-more-than-it-hurts-palestinians/#ixzz1aUdPYR6k

[oberliner]

31. Tony Karon is very consistent

Once I knew it was Time Magazine, it was a pretty sure bet that he wrote this.

[Donald Ian Rankin]

33. Your tone implies that you don't regard that consistency as a virtue? N.T.

[oberliner]

34. He likes to quote Monty Python

In this article it's Life of Brian; last year at this time, it was Holy Grail.

Just saying his style and tone are fairly recognizable if you read him a lot, as I do.

His consistency is neither a virtue nor a vice as far as I'm concerned.

[Scurrilous]

36. Israel’s travel ban harms ‘entire generations’

<snip>

"Last month’s decision by the U.S. Congress to block hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to the Palestinians because of the push for statehood at the United Nations will mean more hardship for Palestinians living under Israeli military occupation.

And while Palestinians have not won statehood state yet, and there is no agreement about what steps should be taken in order to create it, almost everyone can agree that laying the foundations for statehood — shaping democratic values, building functioning institutions and a functioning economy, and investing in education — will reap benefits for both Palestinians and their neighbors in Israel and around the globe.

Which makes it all the more tragic that, while thousands of young Americans return to school this fall to continue or begin their higher education, many Palestinian students are unable to do so because of Israeli policies that severely restrict their freedom of movement. As the Vice Chancellor of Bethlehem University, the only Catholic university serving students from the occupied Palestinian territories, I have the honor to be involved in a process of building a better future in this region. Since its founding in 1973, Bethlehem University has granted degrees and diplomas to more than 12,000 graduates from the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and Gaza.

Unfortunately, since the year 2000, Israel has not allowed students from Gaza to enter the West Bank to study at any Palestinian university. This includes the Vatican-sponsored Bethlehem University in the Latin Patriarchate, which offers degrees in vital fields that are not available in universities in Gaza. Bethlehem University has been creative in making some programs available at a distance to students in Gaza and some students have benefited from these."

Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/10/16/2454501/israels-travel-ban-harms-entire.html#ixzz1bHdA8VZn

[Jefferson23]

37. This is no big deal.

:sarcasm: