NEW YORK (AFP) -- A US judge Monday ordered Palestinian authorities to post $10 million in cash or bond while they appeal a ruling to pay hundreds of millions of dollars to American victims of attacks.
Judge George Daniels said the Palestinian Authority and Palestine Liberation Organization must also deposit $1 million every 30 days, pending appeal of the February verdict.
A New York jury found the PA and PLO liable for six attacks in Jerusalem between 2002-2004, awarding American victims and their families damages that amounted to $655.5 million.
Daniels said the judgment in favor of the plaintiffs would be entered in the next 60 days, but would be stayed pending appeal as long as the deposits were made with the clerk of the court.
Two weeks ago, the Obama administration urged Daniels to "carefully consider" the PA's precarious finances in deciding whether to impose a bond requirement.
Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken raised "significant concerns" about what could happen if a bond "severely compromised the Palestinian Authority's ability to operate as a governmental authority."
He said that depriving the PA "of a significant portion" of its revenue would "severely compromise" its ability to operate and warned that any collapse of the PA would "undermine" US foreign policy and "add a new destabilizing factor to the region." more
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