Why does Israel forgive and forego debts — millions of dollars in debts — owed by the Palestinian Authority?
BILL ME LATER “It is very discomfiting to learn that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu caved in to [Europe’s] pressure and relieved the Palestinians of their debt to the electric company a decision that will come out of the pocket of Israeli taxpayers” says David Ha’ivri a longtime political activist in the Jewish community in the Shomron (Photos: Flash90 AFP/ImageBank)
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arlier this month the Israeli government forgave a debt ofNIS2 billion or $530 million to the Palestinian Authority. The question is: why?
The enormous debt was the result of years of non-payment on electricity provided by Israel Electric Corporation. The Palestinian Authority had racked up the debt over ten years during which the IEC had periodically shut off the electricity in Palestinian cities to press for payment. As part of the dealIsraelalso agreed to transfer control of the electricity grid in Palestinian cities to the PA. But critics of the settlement are asking why the government would agree to such a financial windfall for a governing body that regularly incites againstIsrael works to delegitimize the Jewish state in international bodies and pays the wages of terrorists.
Eugene Kontorovich a professor at Northwestern University School of Law and an expert on international law told Mishpacha there’s no doubt the PA is obligated to pay its debt under theOslo accords.
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