Muslim world bolsters Hamas

[sonz]

Palestinian Foreign Minister Mahmoud Zahar returned from a trip to Muslim states with $20 million for his cash-strapped government, Dispatch.com reported.

Mr Zahar, a Hamas member, crossed the border from Egypt into Gaza with the money in a number of suitcases. A minister accompanying him said the cash would be used to pay salaries for Palestinian civil servants.

The Hamas-led Palestinian Authority has faced a severe financial crisis since the U.S., EU and Israel, who classify the resistance group as a terror organization, imposed a trade embargo on the Palestinian government following Hamas' election victory in the January legislative polls.

Western aid cuts have made the government unable to pay thousands of civil servants, Palestinian hospitals have been struggling to maintain services and families have been selling off their valuables to buy food.

Moreover, tensions between Fatah and Hamas escalated since the resistance group formed the government in March. More than 22 people have been killed in factional fighting between the two parties in the past two months.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has been pressuring Hamas to accept a plan that implicitly recognizes Israel.

But instead of backing Abbas’ proposal, Hamas has turned to the Islamic world for help in order to alleviate the hardships of the Palestinian people.

Mr Zahar returned to Gaza after visiting Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, China, Pakistan, Iran and Egypt.

Palestinian security officials said the money Mr Zahar brought was turned over the Palestinian treasury.

Last month, a Hamas official was caught smuggling $800,000 into Gaza. The money was seized but later transferred to the government.

But since Mr Zahar is a VIP, there are no restrictions on his bringing in the cash, security officials said.