|
PA Dignified Life Grant, primarily to freed
terrorists,
will be "15
million American dollars" in 2013
but is conditioned on "availability of
funds"
by Itamar Marcus and Nan Jacques
Zilberdik
The Palestinian Authority has announced that it plans to give
5,000 released security prisoners who served more than 5 years in Israeli
prisons a Dignified Life Grant. The Head of the Statistics Department of the
Ministry of Prisoners' Affairs, Abd Al-Nasser Farwaneh, said that the amount
distributed would be "15 million American dollars." The PA's intention to use
"American dollars" for released security prisoners, most of whom are convicted
terrorists, was reported by the official PA daily the very same day that the US
announced it was giving the PA "$148 million" - "American dollars" - for the
PA's general budget.
In addition to the Dignified Life Grant payments,
the PA continues to use its budget to fund other terror promotion activities. As
Palestinian Media Watch has
reported, these PA activities include glorifying terrorists,
paying terrorists monthly salaries
while in prison and paying them salaries
following their release.
Last week, France also signed an agreement with
the PA, pledging €9 million (almost $12 million) in aid directly to the PA's
general budget.
The PA also announced that the "15 million American
dollars" to be given to the released prisoners in 2013 is dependent on
"availability of funds." The $148 million donated by the US to the PA general
budget along with other funding from European donors is what makes this "15
million dollars" "available" and facilitates the PA's payment of grants to
terrorists.
According to US law, no American aid money to the PA can be
allocated to "terrorists" or "former terrorists."
Hmmm....."Israel's Staunchest Ally"
PMW reported on Sunday
that the official PA daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, which is also funded by
the PA's budget, actively incites
hatred against the US. According to the PA daily, the US is behind the
turmoil and killings in Syria and other Arab countries, and views the killing of
Syrian civilians as a means to promote American political interests in the
region.
The following are the reports on the PA's Dignified Life
Grant to released prisoners and the US pledge of $148 million to the PA general
budget:
"Released prisoners swarm to the Ministry of
Prisoners' Affairs building in Gaza to register for the Dignified Life Grant,
that the Ministry announced it intends to distribute to improve their
lives.
Since the announcement of the grant, the hopes of thousands of
released prisoners expected to benefit from the grant were renewed. Head of the
Statistics Department of the Ministry [of Prisoners' Affairs], Abd Al-Nasser
Farwaneh said that there is a stream of released prisoners going to the
Ministry's building in Gaza, which belong to the PA, to register their names to
receive the Dignified Life Grant, which is expected to begin next month
[September]... He noted that there is also a stream [of released prisoners] to
the Red Cross offices to obtain a document confirming they were imprisoned by
the occupation's forces.
He expected the number of released prisoners who
will register to receive the grant will reach approximately 5,000 prisoners who
were imprisoned for over five years. He confirmed that the first group of
released prisoners will be able to receive the Dignified Life Grant next month
and explained that payment will depend on availability of funds.
Farwaneh
noted that prisoners who have received the grant in the past will not be able to
receive it this time and that the intention is to deduct [from the grant] any
sum previously received by a prisoner from the Ministry or Presidency.
He
said that the amount allotted for 2013 is approximately 15 million American
dollars."
[Al-Ayyam, Aug. 19,
2013]
Headline: "The US contributed 148
million dollars as aid to the PA's budget"
"Yesterday morning [Aug. 18, 2013]
[PA] Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah and the American Government represented by
Consul General of the United States Michael Ratney, signed an agreement of the
transfer of 148 million dollars in financial aid to the PA's budget... Hamdallah
'thanked the Government of the United States and its people for this aid, which
has been received for the second time this year.' He said that the first
[financial] aid was given in February [2013] in the amount of '200 million
dollars to the state's coffers.' Hamdallah said: 'We need another 600 million
dollars by the end of this year [2013] so that we will be able to cover current
expenses, which include the private sector's salaries and expenses. We hope to
receive aid from our friends and financers so that we will be able to reach this
sum.' [The Consul General of the United States Michael Ratney] added: 'The US
has given a total sum of 4.3 billion dollars in [financial] aid over the past
twenty years, 1.3 billion of it was direct budgetary aid.'"
[Al-Hayat Al-Jadida,
Aug. 19, 2013]
Headline: "[PA Prime Minister Rami]
Hamdallah and [French Foreign Minister Laurent] Fabius sign two [aid] agreements
totaling 24 million Euros"
"Yesterday [Aug. 24, 2013] the Palestinian
government and the French government signed two agreements according to which
Paris will provide the PA with financial aid of close to 24 million Euros... The
value of the two aid agreements is 23,750,000 Euros out of which 9 million Euros
are direct aid to the Palestinian treasury and 14,750,000 Euros for a solid
waste treatment project in the Gaza Strip. [PA Prime Minister] Hamdallah
expressed his appreciation of the aid delivered by the Government of France to
the Palestinian budget, state institutions and our people's just cause."
[Al-Hayat Al-Jadida,
Aug. 25, 2013]
| 
No comments:
Post a Comment