AL pledges $100m to Palestinians

CAIRO: The Arab League has pledged to pay $100 million a month to the Palestinian Authority to plug the gap left when Israel blocked tax transfers earlier in the year.

"We confirm that Arab countries will support the Palestinian state´s budget... (to) resist the political and financial pressure it faces," the League said Sunday following a meeting in Cairo. Israel collects taxes on behalf of the PA, but withheld $138 million in transfers in February over Palestinian payments to political prisoners jailed for attacks against Israelis.

The Arab League´s move comes as the Trump administration prepares to unveil a much-touted "Deal of the Century" for peace between the Palestinians and Israel in the coming months. The Palestinian leadership, which has boycotted Washington over a series of moves including recognising the bitterly disputed city of Jerusalem as capital of Israel, says it can no longer trust the United States as a broker. The Arab League said the deal "will not succeed in achieving long-lasting and comprehensive peace in the Middle East".