EU to Issue Final Decision on Financial Aid Disbursement to PA ‘Soon’

European Union flags fly outside the European Commission headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, April 10, 2019. REUTERS/Yves Herman
European Union flags fly outside the European Commission headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, April 10, 2019. REUTERS/Yves Herman
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EU to Issue Final Decision on Financial Aid Disbursement to PA ‘Soon’

European Union flags fly outside the European Commission headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, April 10, 2019. REUTERS/Yves Herman
European Union flags fly outside the European Commission headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, April 10, 2019. REUTERS/Yves Herman

Palestinian officials hope the European Union will soon issue a decision to disburse assistance to Palestine and overcome an objection by Hungary, which has conditioned the funding to education sector reforms.

Advisor to the Prime Minister for Planning and Aid Coordination Estephan Salameh said an EU commission meeting will soon be held during which a final decision will be taken.

Speaking to the official Palestinian radio, Salameh expressed hope that the EU’s 27 members would pass the decision without any condition.

EU Commissioner for Neighborhood and Enlargement Oliver Varhelyi has been leading the efforts to delay the disbursement of 214 million euros to the Palestinian Authority over the long-running textbook controversy.

He visited Ramallah and discussed with senior PA officials ways to advance the implementation of the EU plan in the Mediterranean region.

He called for changes to be made to Palestinian textbooks and for reforms in Palestinian institutions as well.

There’s an internal row in the Commission about a proposal to make funding for the PA conditional on securing changes to Palestinian school textbooks, which critics say contain anti-Semitic tropes and incitements to violence.

The PA has pressured its allies in the EU to receive the aid and overcome the current financial crisis.

In March, the EU failed to resolve the issue and referred the matter to President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen.

Salameh said the delay is only temporary due to lack of consensus in the bloc on the aid disbursement.

The PA relies on the funds to overcome the months-long financial crisis caused by the pandemic, Israel’s deduction of Palestinian tax funds and the drop in external financial aids.



Israel to Houthis: Whoever Harms Us Will be Harmed Sevenfold

Firefighters work at the scene of an Israeli airstrike on the Haziz power station in southern Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, Dec. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Osamah Abdulrahman)
Firefighters work at the scene of an Israeli airstrike on the Haziz power station in southern Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, Dec. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Osamah Abdulrahman)
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Israel to Houthis: Whoever Harms Us Will be Harmed Sevenfold

Firefighters work at the scene of an Israeli airstrike on the Haziz power station in southern Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, Dec. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Osamah Abdulrahman)
Firefighters work at the scene of an Israeli airstrike on the Haziz power station in southern Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, Dec. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Osamah Abdulrahman)

Israel’s defense minister said Thursday the country would “not allow the continuation” of shooting from Yemen’s Houthis, hours after Israel launched heavy airstrikes on militia sites.

“I suggest the leaders of the Houthi organization to see, to understand and remember, whoever raises a hand against the state of Israel, his hand will be cut off. Whoever harms us will be harmed sevenfold,” said Israel Katz, the defense minister.

Israel would “strike with force,” Katz said, and “not allow the continuation of this situation of shooting and threats against the state of Israel.”

The statement followed a series of intense Israeli airstrikes that shook Sanaa and Hodeidah early Thursday and killed at least nine people, officials said, shortly after a Houthi missile targeted central Israel and badly damaged a school building.