Hamas says some of its forces paid with Abbas funds

Gaza, Mar 14: Part of the 100 million dollars in tax revenues transferred by Israel to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas was used to pay security services, including members of a Hamas-led force, a Hamas source said.

During a meeting with Abbas on Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert asked him to account for how the 100 million dollars in Palestinian tax revenues had been spent.

Israel opposed using the money to pay salaries, particularly to members of Hamas, a group whose charter calls for the destruction of the Jewish state, government officials said.

''The (Hamas) Executive Force was a part of the security services which received part of their salaries, just like the other forces,'' the Hamas source said yesterday.

Top aides to Abbas had no immediate comment.

''This flies in the face on what was agreed upon,'' said an Israeli government official.

The head of Israel's Shin Bet security service, Yuval Diskin, told a parliamentary committee that dozens of Hamas fighters had received training in Iran and hundreds more could receive training in the future.

''This represents a greater danger than the smuggling of arms and ammunition because the training of these people increases the know-how to prepare weapons, to use weapons, the same types that are smuggled,'' Diskin said, according to an official briefed on his testimony.

Under US pressure, Israel transferred the 100 million dollars to Abbas's office in January.

Israeli officials said at the time that the money would be earmarked for humanitarian needs and programmes to strengthen Abbas's presidential guard, and not to pay salaries.

A unity government deal reached last month between Abbas and Hamas Islamists was designed to end factional fighting between Hamas's Executive Force and pro-Fatah security services like the presidential guard, but tensions remain high.

Since Hamas defeated Abbas's Fatah movement in parliamentary elections in January 2006, Israel has been withholding tax revenues normally used by the Palestinian Authority to pay government workers.

Western powers led by the United States have also frozen direct aid to the Hamas-led government.

Reuters

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