THE TIMES: President Obama pledged $400 million (£274m) in aid to Gaza and the West Bank today, calling on Israel to reconsider its “unsustainable” blockade on the Hamas-run territory.
Mr Obama’s comments, coming after a high profile meeting with the Palestinian leader, Mahmoud Abbas, were the clearest sign yet that Washington is reconsidering its prior support for the blockade following Israel’s deadly commando raid on a Gaza-bound aid ship.
MrObama called the flotilla raid a “tragedy” saying that a “better approach” was needed than the three-year-long blockade on Gaza and its rulers in Hamas.
“It’s important that we get all the facts,” Mr Obama said, of the raid in which nine Turkish civilians, one with US citizenship, were killed. “What we also know is that the situation in Gaza is unsustainable.”
He credited the new aid package, most of it earmarked for the rebuilding of Gaza’s wrecked infrastructure to the “advocacy and guidance” of Mr Abbas, a clear attempt to bolster the West Bank leader in the face of rising Hamas support in the wake of the attack and growing disillusionment over the progress of the United States backed peace process. Obama pledges $400m in aid for Gaza... Read on and comment >>> Catherine Philp, Washington | Wednesday, June 09, 2010
*Where is all this money coming from, Mr. President? Don't you understand the gravity of the deficit that America is already running? – Mark
