Financial reports released by the Palestinian Authority (PA) show that its revenues during the first 10 months of 2021 were the highest in its history. However, this fact was absent from the report released by the World Bank in preparation for the meeting of the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee (AHLC), Palestinian Media Watch (PMW) has reported.
The AHLC is an international body whose primary function is to coordinate the delivery of international aid to the Palestinian Authority.
According to the PA’s financial report, its net income for the first 10 months of 2021 totaled NIS 11,391,800,000, reflecting a rise of NIS 1.798 billion in comparison to 2019, and over NIS 3 billion in comparison to 2020. Over the past decade, the PA’s net income has doubled.
The rise in PA revenue was not the only detail missing from the World Bank report, PMW pointed out. Other missing details included the fact that the PA spends hundreds of millions of shekels every year paying financial rewards to terrorists.
Furthermore, the fact that in the last decade the PA has transferred over 8 billion shekels to the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) was not mentioned. Part of the money transferred to the PLO has been used to fund internationally designated terror organizations, such as the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), which is still a member of the PLO. Another part of the funds transferred appears to have facilitated the purchase of a considerable PLO-owned international real estate portfolio.
The PA publishes monthly financial reports as part of its commitment to financial transparency, and as a prerequisite for receiving international aid.
“Instead of focusing merely on the alleged budget deficit as a reason to throw money at the PA, the international donors would be well advised to first take a closer look at where the PA is spending its money,” PMW stated.