Jerusalem (Asianews/Agencies) - The Israeli government approved yesterday evening the release of 100 million US dollars in frozen Palestinian funds and promised to ease West Bank travel restrictions. The move was agreed at the first meeting between Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas. It was the first Israeli-Palestinian summit in 22 months and came as both men face political problems at home that could be eased by a peace breakthrough.
The meeting – which lasted for 2 hours - is a "first step toward rebuilding mutual trust and fruitful cooperation," Olmert's office said. Palestinian officials praised the warm atmosphere and said more meetings were planned.
The two leaders also agreed to establish or re-establish three joint committees - a security committee to discuss the expansion of the current shaky Israeli-Palestinian ceasefire inGazato include theWest Bank; a financial committee tasked with the transfer of tax revenues and other funds to the PA; and another to deal with eventual prisoner exchanges.
Israelhas withheld $600m in tax revenues from the PA since Hamas formed a government earlier this year. The Palestinian economy has suffered from the cut-off of funds, along with a Western aid freeze, which began after Hamas won legislative elections early in the year. Olmert spokeswoman Miri Eisin saidIsraelplans to transfer the money soon, but that it wants to make sure the funds do not reach Hamas, which has refused Western demands to recognizeIsraeland end violence. In addition,Israelwill transfer about 7.25 million US dollars to Palestinian-run hospitals inJerusalem.
Getting control of the money will allow Abbas' office to increasingly take on the role of a shadow government in the Palestinian territories, where the international boycott of Hamas has made it difficult to pay the salaries of 165,000 Palestinian civil servants.
Israelalso agreed to remove several roadblocks in theWest Bankto make travel easier. Olmert also promised to meet a quota of letting 400 trucks move through the main cargo crossing betweenGazaandIsrael.
Olmert's office said the two sides also discussed the possibility of expanding a month-old cease-fire inGazato theWest Bank. However, he complained about the dozens of rocket attacks out ofGazasince the Nov. 26 truce.
Ghazi Hamad, a spokesman for the Hamas-led government, criticizedIsrael's "trickery" in the meeting.
Abbas is locked in an increasingly bitter and violent showdown with Hamas. Last week, he said he would seek early elections, a dramatic challenge to the 10-month-old Hamas government.
