Palestine asks Arab states to guarantee 100-mln-USD monthly loan to overcome financial crisis

Source: Xinhua | 2020-06-14

A senior Palestinian official said on Saturday that the Palestinian Authority has asked the Arab states for guaranteeing a 100-million-U.S.-dollar monthly loan to overcome its financial crisis.

Saeb Erekat, secretary-general of the Palestine Liberation Organization Executive Committee, told the official Voice of Palestine radio that the loan request was in line with the Arab League's previous decisions to ensure a secure Arab financial network.

"It's necessary to provide an urgent Arab financial aid to back the Palestinian Authority's treasury in overcoming the current difficult situation and challenges," said Erekat.

Earlier this month, the Palestinian Authority refused the money from the tax revenues that Israel has been collecting on behalf of it from Palestinian trade at crossing points under the Israeli control.

This was part of the Palestinian leadership's decision to eliminate all agreements and understandings with Israel, including those on the security and economic levels, in response to the latter's plan to annex Palestinian lands in the West Bank.

However, the financial crisis of the Palestinian government has grown to the extent that the government cannot afford the salaries of its civil and security servants in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, as the government deficit has reached 1.4 billion dollars.

Erekat also announced that the UN Security Council will convene on June 24 to discuss the developments in the Palestinian territories.