Tuesday, September 18, 2007

Salaries of Hamas-affiliated PLC members cut off

Gaza – Ma'an – The Palestinian caretaker government, headed by Prime Minister Salam Fayyad has cut off the salaries of 21 Hamas-affiliated Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) members

Gaza – Ma'an – The Palestinian caretaker government, headed by Prime Minister Salam Fayyad has cut off the salaries of 21 Hamas-affiliated Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) members including deposed premier Isma'il Haniyeh, former foreign minister Mahmoud Zahhar, former interior minister Said Siyam, and acting PLC speaker, Ahmad Bahar. On Monday Bahar described the Ramallah-based government's move as "strange and unbelievable."Palestinian Minister of Information, Riyad Al-Maliki denied that the salaries had been permanently stopped but said that payment had been delayed.He said that the delay was in response to the incitement of some Hamas-affiliated legislators against the Palestinian government, which he claimed had reached the level of inciting violence, in some cases."We've received our salaries from the PLC for the last two months and 25 members of the Hamas bloc have not received salaries," independent PLC member, Hasan Khreisha said. PLC member, Isma'il Al-Ashqar commented, "It is not a matter of money, it is rather a kind of political blackmailing and attempt to influence the impartiality of the PLC as well as the destruction of the legal authority."PLC members receive 3000 US dollars a month in salary.


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