Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has said his ministry would unblock funds for Palestinian communities in Israel, after he had previously suspended the money, saying it was fuelling crime, and triggering outrage from local mayors and some lawmakers.
Smotrich, a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right government, said this month that some of the budget funds meant for Palestinian-majority local councils were a political payoff by the previous government that could end up in the hands of “criminals and terrorists”.
