By MOHAMMED MAR’I
RAMALLAH: Senior Palestinian officials on Thursday denied reports that the Palestinian Authority has offered the United States a deal under which it would freeze all moves to achieve full membership for Palestine in various UN agencies until the end of January while the US and Israel would resume transferring it funds.Saeb Erekat, a member of PLO’s Executive Committee, said in a statement that the Israeli daily Haaretz’s report is “baseless.” “It is completely false. Such a proposal was never discussed,” said Erekat.
Haaretz quoted a European diplomat as saying that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s special envoy Isaac Molcho met secretly in London on Tuesday with US administration representatives David Hale and Dennis Ross to discuss the suggestion.
The US administration gives the Palestinians $200 million for security assistance while Israel transfers $100 million in tax it collects on behalf of the PA. The two sides suspended the transfer of funds to the PA after its moves at the UN and its agencies.