Report: Palestinian President closes Hamas-run charities in West Bank

Wednesday December 05, 2007 09:12 by Saed Bannoura - IMEMC News

According to the Lebanese newspaper The Daily Star, the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has ordered the closure of 92 charity organizations in the West Bank.

Palestinian girls studying at a Hamas-funded school

This is part of Abbas' attack on the Hamas party, which was elected to run the Palestinian government last year, but currently only controls one of the two Palestinian territories -- the Gaza Strip. The West Bank remains under the control of the government of Mahmoud Abbas.

He has outlawed any demonstrations in support of Hamas, and has sent his security forces after Hamas fighters. Now, in the latest move to disrupt the Hamas party, he has declared dozens of charities connected to the organization illegal.

One of the committees closed by Abbas, in the West Bank city of Nablus, said it provided aid to 3,200 families and 3,000 orphans, at a cost of $212,000 to $282,000 a month. Most of its support comes from local donations, said the organization's head. Muslims are required by their religion to give a percentage of their income to the poor, and many Palestinians support the charitable work of the Islamic movement, Hamas.

A spokesman for the Hamas party in Gaza, Sami Abu Zuhri, said, "This is an attempt to weaken Hamas, but the Palestinian citizens will pay the price, because they benefit from these committees."

Part of Hamas' popularity comes from the fact that it funds hospitals, schools, nurseries, orphanages and charities -- things that are severely lacking in the Israeli military-controlled Palestinian territories.

west bank | internal unrest | news report saed at imemc dot org