To the consternation of both the Obama administration and Israel, congressional committee leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives have frozen some $200 million in aid that had been intended for the Palestinians in response to their bid for full recognition of Palestine as a state in the United Nations, according to a report from Joseph Farah's G2 Bulletin.
The Palestinians already are embroiled in a financial crisis and Saudi Arabia has announced its intention to make up the loss, which would have affected security and humanitarian assistance to the Palestinians.
According to sources, Saudi Finance Minister Ibrahim Alassaf has informed PA Prime Minister Aalam Fayyad that the Saudi government would transfer the $200 million in funds.
The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank already had determined that the financial crisis in effect would endanger Palestine's state-building program altogether.
"This money goes to establishing and strengthening the institutions of a future Palestinian state, building a more democratic and stable and secure region," said State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland. "We think it is money that is not only in the interest of the Palestinians, it's in U.S. interests and it's also in Israeli interests."
The initiative to cut off funding for the Palestinian Authority comes from two committees in the Republican-controlled House. One is an appropriations subcommittee and the other is the Committee on Foreign Affairs, chaired by Ileana Ros-Lehtinen.
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