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Israel restricts movement of three members of new Palestinian unity government

June 4, 2014 at 10:55 am

In a punitive action against the Palestinian national unity government, Israel informed the Palestinian Authority that it would not allow three members of the new government to move between the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, Israel Radio reported.

The head of Israel’s military administration in the Palestinian territories, Major General Yoav Mordechai, also withdrew the VIP cards from the ministers of the previous Palestinian government who have not been appointed to the new government. Israel grants such cards to allow Palestinian officials to travel across the occupied Palestinian territories.

The radio report added that Israel is considering reducing the privileges granted to the owners of VIP cards, but has not reached a final decision in this regard.

Agence France Press had reported earlier on Sunday that three ministers from Gaza were denied entry to the West Bank ahead of the unveiling of the new unity government.

According to the Arabs 48 news website, the Israeli security cabinet decided on Monday to authorise Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to impose sanctions on the Palestinian Authority in the wake of the formation of the national unity government.

The security cabinet also decided at the end of a long session to work towards hindering Hamas’s participation in the legislative and presidential elections. The meeting agreed that Israel would pressure the international community to oppose the participation of Hamas in the elections. It also decided not to negotiate with any government in which Hamas is involved, and to prevent holding any elections in East Jerusalem.