Iran to Donate $50 Million to Palestinian Government

Voice of America:

16 April 2006

Iran says it is donating $50 million to the Hamas-led Palestinian government, to ease a Palestinian cash crisis spurred by Western aid cuts.

Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki announced the donation Sunday during a conference in Tehran.

The promise of funding comes after the United States and the European Union said they were stopping aid to the Hamas government because it refuses to renounce violence and accept Israel.

Israel is withholding about $50 million in monthly payments of tax revenues it collects for the Palestinian Authority.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.