{"id":413793,"date":"2026-04-27T20:43:15","date_gmt":"2026-04-27T20:43:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/413793\/"},"modified":"2026-04-27T20:43:15","modified_gmt":"2026-04-27T20:43:15","slug":"smotrich-confirms-finance-ministry-hasnt-transferred-any-tax-revenues-to-pa-for-past-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/413793\/","title":{"rendered":"Smotrich confirms Finance Ministry hasn\u2019t transferred any tax revenues to PA for past year"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Finance Ministry confirmed that it has not released Palestinian Authority tax revenues for a year, after PA Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa said that the lack of transfers has left the authority cash-strapped and unable to pay employees.<\/p>\n

Speaking at a press conference Sunday marking the conclusion of local elections in PA areas the previous day, Mustafa said, referring to Israel, \u201cThe occupation has been cutting our funds for years, but the intensity of the cuts has increased over the past 12 months.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added, \u201cIn the past year, not a single shekel of tax revenues has been transferred to us. We are living without tax income in an attempt to destroy the institutions of the State of Palestine. All residents are suffering, particularly PA employees.\u201d<\/p>\n

The funds in question are tax revenues on goods entering Israel that are destined for the Palestinian Authority. Israel collects these funds and is supposed to transfer them to the PA, which is based in the West Bank city of Ramallah and governs daily affairs in the territory\u2019s Palestinian population centers, under the terms of the 1990s Oslo Accords. The revenues account for roughly 60 percent of the PA\u2019s income.<\/p>\n

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich confirmed that he had withheld April\u2019s clearance revenues, totaling NIS 740 million ($248.7 million), continuing a policy that has been in place for about a year.<\/p>\n

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Smotrich is an adamant opponent of Palestinian statehood and has called for the PA to be dismantled.<\/p>\n

On April 19, the Palestinian Authority Finance Ministry announced in an unusual statement that, in light of what it described as Israel \u201cstealing tax revenues\u201d for the past year, all public sector employees would receive only NIS 2,000 ($672) for their January salaries, which were paid with significant delay.<\/p>\n

\t\"\"<\/a>
\n\t\tPalestinian Authority Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa addresses a media conference at EU headquarters in Brussels, April 20, 2026. (AP\/ Geert Vanden Wijngaert)<\/p>\n

Since 2019, Israel has deducted amounts from tax revenues that are equivalent to the Palestinian Authority\u2019s payments to security prisoners held by Israel and the families of those who carry out terror attacks targeting Israelis. Ramallah insisted that it halted that policy last year.<\/p>\n

Beginning in November 2023, following the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, attack and outbreak of the war in Gaza, Israel has transferred only partial funds, also deducting sums the PA had allocated to Gaza (including salaries for former PA employees and services such as electricity and water). The PA said at the time that it would refuse to accept partial transfers.<\/p>\n

According to a statement from the Finance Ministry, the remaining funds \u2014 beyond those allocated to Gaza \u2014 \u201chave been frozen for about a year due to the minister\u2019s policy not to transfer funds to the Palestinian Authority in light of its actions against the State of Israel in the international arena and its support for incitement to terrorism.\u201d<\/p>\n

The clearance revenues mainly include import value-added taxes, customs duties, purchase taxes, and fuel excise on goods destined for the West Bank.<\/p>\n

The Trump administration has pressed Israel to release the funds, including during Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu\u2019s December meeting<\/a> with US President Donald Trump in Florida.<\/p>\n

Despite the US pressure, the premier has refrained from bringing the matter before the cabinet. In November, he shelved plans to prevent Smotrich from trying to collapse the Palestinian Authority, after the far-right minister threatened to resign and bring down the government.<\/p>\n


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