THE US will give a United Nations agency $US60 million in aid for Palestinians, but withhold a further $65million “for future consideration”.
US President Donald Trump had threatened in a tweet to cut millions in contributions in order to force Palestinian National Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to hash out a peace deal with Israel.
“It is time other countries, some of them quite wealthy, step in and do their part to advance regional security and stability,” an administration official told Reuters.
“This is not aimed at punishing” anyone, State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said of the cut.
The US has been the largest donor – responsible for nearly a third of the budget – to the UN Relief and Works Agency that provides aid to Palestinians in the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Lebanon, Jordan and Syria providing food, health-related, and education aid.
Read the full article by Mythili Sampathkumar from The Independent at The Sunshine Coast Daily.