A recent UN report indicates that Israel has withheld tens of billions of dollars in taxes and duties from the Palestinian Authority, placing Palestinians in a fiscal crisis and severely impacting development.
As Congress tackles urgent issues of reopening government and setting the budget for the country, it takes the time to prioritize a foreign country: H.R.648 contains assurances that Israel will receive $3.8 billion for arms, and funding for refugee resettlement; the bill also includes threats to de-fund the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and any future state of Palestine–if US demands (dictated by the Israel lobby) are not met.
An Israeli bill would divert some of the revenue that Israel is obligated to hand over to the Palestinian Authority, to stay in Israel. This revenue is earmarked for social welfare payments to families of Palestinians captured, injured, or killed by Israel. Israel claims this practice promotes terrorism.
American lawmakers and Israeli leaders fail to grasp the need for a fund to compensate families of Palestinians killed, injured, or imprisoned—or the real reason for the violence coming out of the occupied West Bank and Gaza.