Palestine denounces Israeli court decision to freeze funds

RAMALLAH, Oct. 22 (Xinhua) -- The Palestinian government condemned on Tuesday an Israeli court decision to freeze new funds from the Palestinian Authority.

Mohammed Abu al-Rub, director of the Palestinian Government Communication Center, said to the Palestinian official news agency WAFA that freezing additional Palestinian funds is a new attempt to further target Palestinian state institutions and compel them to stop fulfilling their commitments to the Palestinian people.

Abu al-Rub emphasized that the official Palestinian position is clear in rejecting the Israeli "extortion," adding that Israel is enforcing a severe financial blockade by cutting over half of the monthly clearance revenues, which is the main source of the Palestinian public finances.

According to Israel's state-owned Kan TV news, the Central Court in Jerusalem ordered the freezing of 410 million Israeli shekels (109 million U.S. dollars) from the Palestinian Authority's funds earlier in the day. ■