U.S. Senate passes bill to block aid to Hamas government

Last update - 04:11 24/06/2006


U.S. Senate passes bill to block aid to Hamas government

By Shmuel Rosner, Haaretz Correspondent and News Agencies

WASHINGTON - The United States Senate on Friday passed a bill that blocks United States aid from going to the Hamas-led Palestinian Authority but gives humanitarian relief to the Palestinian people and supports Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.

The Senate bill gives the Bush administration more discretion to provide relief to the cash-starved Palestinians than a more punitive measure passed by the House of Representatives in May.

The Senate unanimously approved the bill and it now must be reconciled with the House version, which the administration opposed.


U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) said the bill will ensure the Hamas-led PA will not receive aid until it recognizes Israel, but added that it will not prevent Washington from: "providing assistance directly to the Palestinian people to meet basic humanitarian needs."
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http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/730739.html

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The real problem is people don't know what they are talking about, they can only repeat talking points or "follow the crowd."

I recall as a kid when that one country came in. Seemed like a good thing until one thinks of taking the land from people who did not want to give it up. But it is there now, so some how the mess must be fixed. Since what should have happened did not, we just can not put things back. Like my mother-in-law used to day. The English should leave Ireland and I said and we should leave America. She would really get mad but we just can not go back and must fix what we have to work better.

There COULD have been two countries, but guess which group didn't want to share?!

I agree it must be fixed. Also, there must be balance in understanding why this happened. There is enough blame to go around, yet only one side seems to get the blame. Instead of assigning blame, we should be looking for resolution.

Yell at each other if you like but stop killing each other and fix it. I hate this Hatfield and McCoy style of life for any one. It is a real waste of people and goods.