Jerusalem: Israel’s cabinet Monday announced a series of resolutions against the new Palestinian unity government after it was sworn-in in Ramallah.
“The diplomatic security cabinet decided to continue the suspension of the negotiations with a Hamas-backed Palestinian government,” the Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement, Xinhua reported.
Earlier, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas reassured that the unity government consist of technocrats who are not affiliated with a political party but still accept past agreements with Israel and also denounce terrorism.
The cabinet also authorised the prime minister to “impose further sanctions against the Palestinian Authority, and hold the Palestinian government responsible for any attacks against Israelis originating from the West Bank and the Gaza Strip”.
During a previous meeting Sunday night, the cabinet agreed to impose economic sanctions against the Palestinian government, and reallocate tax money that Israel collects on behalf of the Palestinian government to pay off the latter’s debts to Israeli companies.
The Palestinian national unity government was sworn-in on Monday before Abbas in the West Bank city of Ramallah, which drew strong reactions from Israeli politicians, both right and left.