RAMALLAH, June 3 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian Authorities (PA) will not stop payments for families of Palestinian prisoners or those injured or slain by Israel, said head of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Detainees Affairs Commission on Tuesday.
Eassa Qaraqe' stated that "we reject Israeli attempt to criminalize the struggle of the Palestinian people and representing our prisoners and martyrs as terrorists."
"We will continue to stand by the families of the martyrs and prisoners, no matter how difficult the financial situation gets, because they are symbols, heroes and legal fighters for freedom, dignity, the Palestinian statehood and the right to self-determination," he added.
In a late vote on Monday night, the Israeli Knesset (Parliament) passed a new bill with 87 in favor and 15 against, allowing Israeli authorities to deduct millions of U.S. dollars from the Palestinian tax revenues it collects on behalf of the PA.
The money will be deducted from the PA customs revenues that Israel collects on its behalf on goods entering through the Israeli controlled ports.
The amount of customs revenues is over 120 million dollars monthly, while the deducted amount would be about 32 million dollars per month.
Palestinian officials described the law as theft and accused Israel of using it for political pressure and collective punishment.
Palestinian president spokesperson said that the law is like "waging a war against Palestinians," violating the basic principles of the Oslo Accords signed between the PLO and Israeli government in 1993.
He urged the Israeli government to retract it because "pressing ahead with this law will have significant consequences and all options are open to Palestinians to respond, starting with the International Criminal Court and the UN Security Council."
The Palestinian government said in an emailed press statement that the "Israeli policy of deduction and withholding money and deciding how to deal with them is a flagrant breach of international law and agreements signed between the two sides, especially the Paris Protocol."
The government statement said it will contact the French government, which chaperoned reaching the Paris economic protocol "to respond to Israel's piracy of Palestinian tax money."
Member of the PLO Executive Committee Bassam Salhi reiterated the official political position that the "PA will never succumb to the Israeli blackmail," describing the new law as "piracy of Palestinian money."
