Money and EconomicsIsrael and Palestine
Money makes the world go round and actions speak louder than words. Where is the money going? What is it used for?
Tuesday, September 30, 2003
U.S. Puts Off Decision on reducing loan guarantees because of Israeli Settlements
Yahoo! News - U.S. Puts Off Decision on Israeli Settlements: "U.S. Puts Off Decision on Israeli Settlements Tue, Sep 30, 2003 By Jonathan Wright
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States said on Tuesday it had put off a decision on how much it will deduct from loan guarantees to Israel to show its displeasure with Israel's work on Jewish settlements in the West Bank and Gaza.
U.S. law requires the administration to report to Congress by Sept. 30 each year on the amount it plans to deduct ...
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Americans for Peace Now, an advocacy group which opposes Jewish settlements, said the decision not to make a deduction by the Sept. 30 deadline was clearly not in line with the law.
Spokesman Lewis Roth said the group hoped that the State Department was taking extra time to take account of a recent report that Israel spends about $550 million a year on settlements, much more than previous estimates of between $200 million and $250 million.
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The United States has long criticized Israeli settlements because of the effect they have on Arab and Palestinian opinion, but deductions from loan guarantees are the only punitive measure Washington has ever taken in practice.
Yahoo! News - U.S. Puts Off Decision on Israeli Settlements: "U.S. Puts Off Decision on Israeli Settlements Tue, Sep 30, 2003 By Jonathan Wright
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States said on Tuesday it had put off a decision on how much it will deduct from loan guarantees to Israel to show its displeasure with Israel's work on Jewish settlements in the West Bank and Gaza.
U.S. law requires the administration to report to Congress by Sept. 30 each year on the amount it plans to deduct ...
...
Americans for Peace Now, an advocacy group which opposes Jewish settlements, said the decision not to make a deduction by the Sept. 30 deadline was clearly not in line with the law.
Spokesman Lewis Roth said the group hoped that the State Department was taking extra time to take account of a recent report that Israel spends about $550 million a year on settlements, much more than previous estimates of between $200 million and $250 million.
...
The United States has long criticized Israeli settlements because of the effect they have on Arab and Palestinian opinion, but deductions from loan guarantees are the only punitive measure Washington has ever taken in practice.
Tuesday, September 16, 2003
The United States will reduce loan guarantees to Israel for expanding Jewish settlements on the West Bank
Excite News: "U.S. Reducing Loan Guarantees to Israel Sep 16, 4:54 PM (ET) By BARRY SCHWEID
WASHINGTON (AP) - The United States will reduce loan guarantees to Israel for expanding Jewish settlements on the West Bank and may follow up with cuts for ignoring U.S. objections to construction of a security barrier, the Bush administration said Tuesday.
The construction is on land the Palestinians claim for the state President Bush has promised by 2005 under his beleaguered 'road map' peace plan. Secretary of State Colin Powell is to decide how much of the $9 billion in guarantees will be withheld.
Under law, the guarantees may support only activities in areas Israel held before the 1967 Six-Day War, State Department deputy spokesman Adam Ereli said. And, he said, the settlement construction is inconsistent with objectives and understandings between the United States and Israel.
Still under review is a security barrier Israel is building, planned to be 400 miles long when finished, to try to screen out Palestinian terrorists. The administration has not opposed the overall project but objects to any interference with Palestinian life as it winds around, and in places through, Palestinian-claimed land."
Excite News: "U.S. Reducing Loan Guarantees to Israel Sep 16, 4:54 PM (ET) By BARRY SCHWEID
WASHINGTON (AP) - The United States will reduce loan guarantees to Israel for expanding Jewish settlements on the West Bank and may follow up with cuts for ignoring U.S. objections to construction of a security barrier, the Bush administration said Tuesday.
The construction is on land the Palestinians claim for the state President Bush has promised by 2005 under his beleaguered 'road map' peace plan. Secretary of State Colin Powell is to decide how much of the $9 billion in guarantees will be withheld.
Under law, the guarantees may support only activities in areas Israel held before the 1967 Six-Day War, State Department deputy spokesman Adam Ereli said. And, he said, the settlement construction is inconsistent with objectives and understandings between the United States and Israel.
Still under review is a security barrier Israel is building, planned to be 400 miles long when finished, to try to screen out Palestinian terrorists. The administration has not opposed the overall project but objects to any interference with Palestinian life as it winds around, and in places through, Palestinian-claimed land."
Friday, September 12, 2003
Attacks by settlers cause Palestinian Olive harvest to fall 80% in 2 years
Foreign Policy In Focus | Global Affairs Commentary | Road Map: Sharon & The Record:
"Attacks by settlers, settlement expansion, and border closures have wrecked the Palestinian economy, in particular, agriculture. The olive harvest, for instance, fell from 126,147 tons in 2000, to 22,155 tons in 2002. According to Palestinians, one million olive trees have been uprooted by the occupation."
Foreign Policy In Focus | Global Affairs Commentary | Road Map: Sharon & The Record:
"Attacks by settlers, settlement expansion, and border closures have wrecked the Palestinian economy, in particular, agriculture. The olive harvest, for instance, fell from 126,147 tons in 2000, to 22,155 tons in 2002. According to Palestinians, one million olive trees have been uprooted by the occupation."
Israeli GDP contracting, 20% of Israelis in poverty while 50% of Palestinians subsist, 13.2% of Gaza' children "body wasting"
Foreign Policy In Focus | Global Affairs Commentary | "Coin of Empire" Too Costly for Israelis, Palestinians, and U.S. Taxpayers: By Conn Hallinan | July 9, 2003
'The coin of empire is always bought dear' was an expression that emerged from the great Irish Tithe War of the 1830s, when the British taxed the Catholic Irish to support the Church of England. After three years of opposition, bloodshed, and financial chaos, one colonial officer glumly pointed out that it was costing the Crown, 'a shilling to collect tuppence.'
That is a lesson the government of Israel's Prime Minister Ariel Sharon might heed as it continues to occupy the West Bank and Gaza at a cost that threatens to destroy the Israeli economy, "
...
For the second year in a row, Israel's GDP has contracted. Unemployment overall is 10.8%; it is more than double that rate in Israeli Arab towns. Over 300,000 Israelis are jobless. According to government reports, 1.2 million Israelis--one-fifth of the population--now live in poverty. The official poverty line income is $934 a month for families with two children. The number of poor families has risen 30% in the past 14 years and the number of children in poverty 50%. Some 27% of Israel's children are officially designated poor.
While poverty is growing among Israelis, it is definitive among the Palestinians. Over 50% of the West Bank and Gaza populations are jobless, and 75% of Gaza's residents live on less than $2 a day. The U.S. Agency for International Development found that 13.2% of Gaza's children and 4.3% in the West Bank suffer from what it called "body wasting" or inadequate nutrition. Almost one in five children has moderate anemia.
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According to Peace Now, the occupation costs the Israeli government about $1.4 billion a year, a figure that will surely rise with the continued expansion of the settlements.
Foreign Policy In Focus | Global Affairs Commentary | "Coin of Empire" Too Costly for Israelis, Palestinians, and U.S. Taxpayers: By Conn Hallinan | July 9, 2003
'The coin of empire is always bought dear' was an expression that emerged from the great Irish Tithe War of the 1830s, when the British taxed the Catholic Irish to support the Church of England. After three years of opposition, bloodshed, and financial chaos, one colonial officer glumly pointed out that it was costing the Crown, 'a shilling to collect tuppence.'
That is a lesson the government of Israel's Prime Minister Ariel Sharon might heed as it continues to occupy the West Bank and Gaza at a cost that threatens to destroy the Israeli economy, "
...
For the second year in a row, Israel's GDP has contracted. Unemployment overall is 10.8%; it is more than double that rate in Israeli Arab towns. Over 300,000 Israelis are jobless. According to government reports, 1.2 million Israelis--one-fifth of the population--now live in poverty. The official poverty line income is $934 a month for families with two children. The number of poor families has risen 30% in the past 14 years and the number of children in poverty 50%. Some 27% of Israel's children are officially designated poor.
While poverty is growing among Israelis, it is definitive among the Palestinians. Over 50% of the West Bank and Gaza populations are jobless, and 75% of Gaza's residents live on less than $2 a day. The U.S. Agency for International Development found that 13.2% of Gaza's children and 4.3% in the West Bank suffer from what it called "body wasting" or inadequate nutrition. Almost one in five children has moderate anemia.
...
According to Peace Now, the occupation costs the Israeli government about $1.4 billion a year, a figure that will surely rise with the continued expansion of the settlements.
Monday, September 08, 2003
Bush Admin. Freezes Assets of 5 Palestinian Groups
Bush Admin. Freezes Assets of 5 Groups | Aug 22, 2003 1:28 PM (ET), Excite News
BURBANK, Wash. (AP) - The Bush administration on Friday froze the assets of five European-based organizations it says raise money for the radical Palestinian group Hamas.
President Bush said he was taking the action because Hamas claimed responsibility for Tuesday's suicide attack on a packed bus in Jerusalem that killed 20 people, including six children."
Bush Admin. Freezes Assets of 5 Groups | Aug 22, 2003 1:28 PM (ET), Excite News
BURBANK, Wash. (AP) - The Bush administration on Friday froze the assets of five European-based organizations it says raise money for the radical Palestinian group Hamas.
President Bush said he was taking the action because Hamas claimed responsibility for Tuesday's suicide attack on a packed bus in Jerusalem that killed 20 people, including six children."
Israel, U.S. Sign Loan $9B Guarantee Accord
heraldsun.com: Israel, U.S. Sign Loan Guarantee Accord By PETER ENAV : Associated Press Writer Aug 21, 2003 : 8:56 am ET
JERUSALEM -- Israel and the U.S. have signed a $9 billion dollar loan guarantee agreement clouded by Israeli plans for a security barrier cutting deep into the West Bank, a Finance Ministry official said Thursday.
U.S. officials said last month they were considering reducing the loan guarantees by the same amount Israel spends on any sections of the disputed, partially built barrier that extend beyond the so-called 'Green Line' marking Israel's eastern border.
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The loan guarantee is regarded as crucial to stabilizing the Israeli economy; per capita income has fallen from $18,000 to about $15,000 per year since the outbreak of Israeli-Palestinian violence in September 2000, and unemployment is approaching 11 percent. "
heraldsun.com: Israel, U.S. Sign Loan Guarantee Accord By PETER ENAV : Associated Press Writer Aug 21, 2003 : 8:56 am ET
JERUSALEM -- Israel and the U.S. have signed a $9 billion dollar loan guarantee agreement clouded by Israeli plans for a security barrier cutting deep into the West Bank, a Finance Ministry official said Thursday.
U.S. officials said last month they were considering reducing the loan guarantees by the same amount Israel spends on any sections of the disputed, partially built barrier that extend beyond the so-called 'Green Line' marking Israel's eastern border.
...
The loan guarantee is regarded as crucial to stabilizing the Israeli economy; per capita income has fallen from $18,000 to about $15,000 per year since the outbreak of Israeli-Palestinian violence in September 2000, and unemployment is approaching 11 percent. "
The average [Israeli] wage in the economy dropped 6.4 percent
Average wage falls to NIS 6,936 By Zvi Zrahiya Ha'aretz - Article 08 September, 2003
The average wage in the economy dropped 6.4 percent in the second quarter of 2003, compared to a year earlier, to NIS 6,936 a month. The drop in average wage was evident across the board in the economy, with the exception of salary earners in food and hotel services, according to figures released yesterday by the Central Bureau of Statistics.
Average wage falls to NIS 6,936 By Zvi Zrahiya Ha'aretz - Article 08 September, 2003
The average wage in the economy dropped 6.4 percent in the second quarter of 2003, compared to a year earlier, to NIS 6,936 a month. The drop in average wage was evident across the board in the economy, with the exception of salary earners in food and hotel services, according to figures released yesterday by the Central Bureau of Statistics.
The [Palestinian] GDP has plummeted by more than 30 percent. Individual consumption has dropped by about 40 percent [since 1999]
Back to the drawing board By Danny Rabinowitz Ha'aretz - Article Friday, July 04, 2003
This week, the World Bank published its report for the year 2002-03 on the state of the Palestinian economy, reflecting the picture in all its bleakness. "
...
... Since 1999, the population of the territories has grown by about 13 percent, but the GDP has plummeted by more than 30 percent. Individual consumption has dropped by about 40 percent, exports have shrunk by about 50 percent and imports by about 60 percent. "
Back to the drawing board By Danny Rabinowitz Ha'aretz - Article Friday, July 04, 2003
This week, the World Bank published its report for the year 2002-03 on the state of the Palestinian economy, reflecting the picture in all its bleakness. "
...
... Since 1999, the population of the territories has grown by about 13 percent, but the GDP has plummeted by more than 30 percent. Individual consumption has dropped by about 40 percent, exports have shrunk by about 50 percent and imports by about 60 percent. "
Saturday, September 06, 2003
Britain clamps down on [Israeli] imports [from occupied territories]
Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Britain clamps down on imports
Michael White, political editor
Friday April 4, 2003
The Guardian
Tony Blair's government tightened the screws on Israel's illegal West Bank settlements yesterday by warning British food and agricultural importers that they will now be liable for taxes on zero-rated goods which are not genuinely Israeli.
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"These settlements are illegal under international law, they are not part of Israel," one Labour MP said yesterday. "By buying such goods we are subsidising these settlements." "
Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Britain clamps down on imports
Michael White, political editor
Friday April 4, 2003
The Guardian
Tony Blair's government tightened the screws on Israel's illegal West Bank settlements yesterday by warning British food and agricultural importers that they will now be liable for taxes on zero-rated goods which are not genuinely Israeli.
...
"These settlements are illegal under international law, they are not part of Israel," one Labour MP said yesterday. "By buying such goods we are subsidising these settlements." "
Sixty percent of Palestinians were living on less than $2 a day
World Bank: Palestinians need $1 billion in aid this year Ha'aretz - Article By Reuters
LONDON - The World Bank said Wednesday that Palestinians would need $1.1 billion in aid this year to keep their devastated economy afloat and tackle a deep humanitarian crisis in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
Nigel Roberts, the bank's director of programs in the territories, said the figure would cover only the most urgent day-to-day needs after an economic collapse triggered by two years of conflict with Israel.
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Sixty percent of Palestinians were living on less than $2 a day.
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"[The Israelis] are demoralizing people, and possibly they are resulting in radicalization of the population, which in turn may be resulting in more security incidents," he said. "
World Bank: Palestinians need $1 billion in aid this year Ha'aretz - Article By Reuters
LONDON - The World Bank said Wednesday that Palestinians would need $1.1 billion in aid this year to keep their devastated economy afloat and tackle a deep humanitarian crisis in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
Nigel Roberts, the bank's director of programs in the territories, said the figure would cover only the most urgent day-to-day needs after an economic collapse triggered by two years of conflict with Israel.
...
Sixty percent of Palestinians were living on less than $2 a day.
...
"[The Israelis] are demoralizing people, and possibly they are resulting in radicalization of the population, which in turn may be resulting in more security incidents," he said. "
2.2 billion [$500M] of state funds were transferred to West Bank settlements in 2001
Ha'aretz - Article | Peace Now: NIS 2.2 billion went to settlements in 2001 By Nadav Shragai Thursday, January 23, 2003
Some NIS 2.2 billion of state funds were transferred to West Bank settlements in 2001, according to a Peace Now study.
The study was conducted by economist Dror Tsaban, formerly a budget official and assistant director general in the Finance Ministry. It is based on a partial estimate of the allocations of various cabinet ministries to the settlements.
The estimate does not include the security budget, the Education Ministry budget and allocations to state supported bodies and institutions. "
Ha'aretz - Article | Peace Now: NIS 2.2 billion went to settlements in 2001 By Nadav Shragai Thursday, January 23, 2003
Some NIS 2.2 billion of state funds were transferred to West Bank settlements in 2001, according to a Peace Now study.
The study was conducted by economist Dror Tsaban, formerly a budget official and assistant director general in the Finance Ministry. It is based on a partial estimate of the allocations of various cabinet ministries to the settlements.
The estimate does not include the security budget, the Education Ministry budget and allocations to state supported bodies and institutions. "
Cost of Israel to US ... more than twice the cost of the Vietnam War
Economist tallies swelling cost of Israel to US | csmonitor.com from Work & Money: "Economic Scene" Column, December 09, 2002 edition
Since 1973, Israel has cost the United States about $1.6 trillion. If divided by today's population, that is more than $5,700 per person.
...
... So far, he figures, the bill adds up to more than twice the cost of the Vietnam War.
And now Israel wants more. In a meeting at the White House late last month, Israeli officials made a pitch for $4 billion in additional military aid to defray the rising costs of dealing with the intifada and suicide bombings. They also asked for more than $8 billion in loan guarantees to help the country's recession-bound economy.
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Stauffer's list will be controversial. He's been assisted in this research by a number of mostly retired military or diplomatic officials who do not go public for fear of being labeled anti-Semitic if they criticize America's policies toward Israel.
See also: Editor's note regarding objectivity in this column.
Economist tallies swelling cost of Israel to US | csmonitor.com from Work & Money: "Economic Scene" Column, December 09, 2002 edition
Since 1973, Israel has cost the United States about $1.6 trillion. If divided by today's population, that is more than $5,700 per person.
...
... So far, he figures, the bill adds up to more than twice the cost of the Vietnam War.
And now Israel wants more. In a meeting at the White House late last month, Israeli officials made a pitch for $4 billion in additional military aid to defray the rising costs of dealing with the intifada and suicide bombings. They also asked for more than $8 billion in loan guarantees to help the country's recession-bound economy.
...
Stauffer's list will be controversial. He's been assisted in this research by a number of mostly retired military or diplomatic officials who do not go public for fear of being labeled anti-Semitic if they criticize America's policies toward Israel.
See also: Editor's note regarding objectivity in this column.
Wednesday, September 03, 2003
Equivalent of Over Half of US Economic Aid to Israel Spent on Settlement Movement
Brit Tzedek v'Shalom - Jewish Alliance for Justice and Peace: "Equivalent of Over Half of US Economic Aid to Israel Spent on Settlement Movement Press release by Americans for Peace Now, January 23, 2003 (PDF format) "
Brit Tzedek v'Shalom - Jewish Alliance for Justice and Peace: "Equivalent of Over Half of US Economic Aid to Israel Spent on Settlement Movement Press release by Americans for Peace Now, January 23, 2003 (PDF format) "
For every dollar the U.S. spent on an African, it spent $250.65 on an Israeli
Friends of Liberty - The Cost of Israel to U.S. Taxpayers: True Lies About U.S. Aid to Israel
This meant that for every dollar the U.S. spent on an African, it spent $250.65 on an Israeli, and for every dollar it spent on someone from the Western Hemisphere outside the United States, it spent $214 on an Israeli.
Shocking Comparisons
These comparisons already seem shocking, but they are far from the whole truth. Using reports compiled by Clyde Mark of the Congressional Research Service and other sources, freelance writer Frank Collins tallied for the Washington Report all of the extra items for Israel buried in the budgets of the Pentagon and other federal agencies in fiscal year 1993"
Friends of Liberty - The Cost of Israel to U.S. Taxpayers: True Lies About U.S. Aid to Israel
This meant that for every dollar the U.S. spent on an African, it spent $250.65 on an Israeli, and for every dollar it spent on someone from the Western Hemisphere outside the United States, it spent $214 on an Israeli.
Shocking Comparisons
These comparisons already seem shocking, but they are far from the whole truth. Using reports compiled by Clyde Mark of the Congressional Research Service and other sources, freelance writer Frank Collins tallied for the Washington Report all of the extra items for Israel buried in the budgets of the Pentagon and other federal agencies in fiscal year 1993"
Complete total of U.S. grants and loan guarantees to Israel for fiscal 1997 was $5,525,800,000
Friends of Liberty - The Cost of Israel to U.S. Taxpayers: True Lies About U.S. Aid to Israel By Richard H. Curtiss November 17, 2002
For many years the American media said that 'Israel receives $1.8 billion in military aid' or that 'Israel receives $1.2 billion in economic aid.' Both statements were true, but since they were never combined to give us the complete total of annual U.S. aid to Israel, they also were lies--true lies...
Recently Americans have begun to read and hear that 'Israel receives $3 billion in annual U.S. foreign aid.' That's true. But it's still a lie. The problem is that in fiscal 1997 alone, Israel received from a variety of other U.S. federal budgets at least $525.8 million above and beyond its $3 billion from the foreign aid budget, and yet another $2 billion in federal loan guarantees. So the complete total of U.S. grants and loan guarantees to Israel for fiscal 1997 was $5,525,800,000"
Friends of Liberty - The Cost of Israel to U.S. Taxpayers: True Lies About U.S. Aid to Israel By Richard H. Curtiss November 17, 2002
For many years the American media said that 'Israel receives $1.8 billion in military aid' or that 'Israel receives $1.2 billion in economic aid.' Both statements were true, but since they were never combined to give us the complete total of annual U.S. aid to Israel, they also were lies--true lies...
Recently Americans have begun to read and hear that 'Israel receives $3 billion in annual U.S. foreign aid.' That's true. But it's still a lie. The problem is that in fiscal 1997 alone, Israel received from a variety of other U.S. federal budgets at least $525.8 million above and beyond its $3 billion from the foreign aid budget, and yet another $2 billion in federal loan guarantees. So the complete total of U.S. grants and loan guarantees to Israel for fiscal 1997 was $5,525,800,000"
Tuesday, September 02, 2003
Fact sheets on U.S. Aid to Israel - Palestine Monitor: "The Israeli government is the largest recipient of US financial aid in the world,
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receiving over one-third of total US aid to foreign countries4, even though Israel's population comprises just .001% of the world's population and has one the world's higher per capita incomes. "
2001 Budget request for Israel: $1.98 billion
2001 Economic Support Fund for Israel: $840 million
Private donations to American charities ... it is estimated that these [private] tax-deductible donations exceed $1.5 billion per year.
