A new report by the Israeli newspaper 'Jerusalem Post', based on unnamed sources within the Palestinian Authority, claims that the PA has agreed to pursue no formal charges against Israel in the International Criminal Court (ICC), in exchange for the release of tax money that had been illegally seized by Israeli authorities.
The report came after an announcement on Friday by the Israeli government that they would return to the Palestinian Authority some of the $500 million that they had illegally seized since January, but would not return the entire amount - instead subtracting from the total an arbitrary charge for electric, water and hospital bills.
This amount will also not include the tax monies from the month of March, just January and February. So far the Israeli government has not made any statement on whether or when it will release the March tax funds. These are taxes collected by Israel on goods imported into the Palestinian Territories - since the PA does not control any borders, Israel has complete control over all imports and exports. Despite the fact that these taxes are supposed to be directly transferred to the PA, Israeli authorities regularly withhold and seize these funds. more
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