Israel is considering limited contact with the Hamas-led Palestinian government as part of efforts to prevent a humanitarian crisis in the territories, senior government officials in Jerusalem said Wednesday.
The sources spoke ahead of a special discussion on Israeli-Palestinian Authority relations to be chaired next week by Acting Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.
According to the sources, any contact with the Palestinian Authority will only take place through those channels aimed at preventing a humanitarian crisis. The sources denied, however, that such a crisis was imminent.
Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh told the first meeting of his cabinet Wednesday that the PA coffers are empty, and warned there would be difficulties paying the March salaries of PA employees. This is the first admission by Hamas that it will have difficulty running the West Bank and Gaza without massive foreign aid.
A collapse of the Palestinian Authority would be devastating to an economy where 44 percent of the population lives under the poverty line of about $2 a day, and nearly one-quarter of the work force is unemployed, according to World Bank figures.
The Palestinian Authority is the largest employer in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, providing salaries for 140,000 people and sustaining about one-third of the Palestinians. Monthly salaries, due on April 1, have not been paid, and Haniyeh said it remains unclear how the government will meet its payroll.
Palestinian Finance Minister Omar Abdel Razek said he is waiting for $80 million from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates.
Next week's session led by Olmert will be the first since the Hamas government was sworn in last week. The aim of the meeting is to formulate steps Israel can take to weaken Hamas without causing a crisis in the territories, particularly in the Gaza Strip.
Israel will refrain from holding any contacts with Hamas officials in the PA, both in political and professional positions, nor is Olmert planning to meet PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas in the near future, the sources said.
Israel will not renew the transfer of tax monies to the Palestinians, which was halted in the wake of Hamas' election victory in January, and will not contact Hamas officials in the PA, the sources said.
The United States and Canada have severed ties with the PA since the Hamas victory, and the European Union is yet to decide on its policy regarding funds to the Palestinians, worth hundreds of millions of euros, as Hamas will not recognize Israel or renounce violence. Both the U.S. and the EU class Hamas as a 'terrorist' organization.
Haniyeh offered no solutions to the cash crunch, pledging only to do his best to resolve the crisis and appealing to the Arab world to give more aid to the Palestinians.
In a symbolic step, he said the cabinet members would not be paid until the financial crisis is solved.
Nonetheless, the senior Israeli officials reject the argument of United Nations aid organizations that the Gaza Strip is facing a humanitarian crisis. The officials acknowledged supply problems due to the closure of the Karni crossing, but said the problem has been solved with its reopening.
The officials accused the Palestinian Authority of ‘atrocious propaganda’ and giving an appearance of crisis in an effort to win international aid.
Palestinian Finance Minister Omar Abdel-Razeq said on Wednesday evening the Hamas-led government expected to receive $80 million from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates to help pay March salaries.
But he said it was unclear when the Palestinian Authority would secure the funds.
EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana says that until Hamas renounces violence and recognizes Israel, ‘talking about business as usual simply isn't possible.’
The EU is expected to decide on Monday at a meeting of foreign ministers in Luxembourg whether to continue to finance the Palestinian government.