Congress set to cut Palestinian aid
Lawmakers included the provision in must-pass spending legislation to keep the government open.
After months of negotiations and multiple revisions, Congress is on the verge of mandating that the Donald Trump administration cut economic assistance to the West Bank and Gaza that “directly benefits” the Palestinian Authority (PA).
The legislation, known as the Taylor Force Act, was incorporated into a government spending bill that Congress must pass by Friday in order to avert a government shutdown. Unless the PA ceases its so-called martyr payments to Palestinian assailants responsible for attacks in Israel and to the assailants’ families, the aid cuts will soon go into effect.
The House passed the $1.3 trillion spending bill 256-167 and the Senate will vote soon. The White House has said that Trump will sign it into law.
“After over two years of very hard work, we are on the verge of having the Taylor Force Act become law,” said Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., the chief architect of the bill in the Senate. “The Palestinian Authority pays monetary rewards to terrorists and their families. These rewards for terrorist attacks are inconsistent with American values. They are inconsistent with decency and they are certainly inconsistent with peace.”
