RAMALLAH: Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak has approved the transfer of 100 million Israeli shekel ($25.5 million) from West Bank banks to the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli Defense Ministry said in a press statement that the decision was made following “personal request” by Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad and Governor of the Bank of Israel Stanley Fischer, due to the lack of cash funds in Gaza.
An Israeli ban on cash transfers to the Gaza Strip since early December deprived the Palestinian civil servants in the area from receiving their salaries and celebrating the Muslim holiday of Eid Al-Adha.
Last Wednesday, the Palestinian Authority announced it would pay its workers after a donation by the European Union.
Jihad Al-Wazir, the director of the Palestine Monetary Authority, said that the required cash is ready to be transferred to Gaza Strip, and he is waiting the Israeli approval.
Last week, the World Bank warned that the crisis could bring down the banking system in Gaza.
