Special report: Hamas-led cabinet takes office

    GAZA, May 3 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haneya said on Wednesday that his cabinet has managed to collect enough financial aid but encountered money transfer problems.

    "We have no problem in collecting money, but the problem lies in the obstacles and pressures that the United States is imposing on countries and banks to stop the transfer of money to the Palestinian government," Haneya told a press conference held in Gaza.

    Haneya said that the Palestinian government had succeeded in collecting a monthly 150-200 million U.S. dollars to the Palestinians.

    The U.S. and the European Union have cut off direct financial aid to the Hamas government since it took office in late March but refused to renounce violence, recognize Israel's right to exist and honor previous Palestinian-Israeli agreements.

    Israel has also halted a monthly transfer of about 50 million U.S. dollars of tax revenues it collects on behalf of the Palestinians since Hamas' sweeping victory in the January Palestinian legislative polls.

    Under a severe financial siege, the cabinet has not been able to pay overdue salaries to more than 160,000 government employees.

    Haneya said that senior Hamas officials including Foreign Minister Mahmoud al-Zahar, have been on a tour in several Arab and Islamic countries and managed to collect enough money to pay the employees.

    The premier dismissed the current financial siege, saying that the cabinet was not a Hamas cabinet but one that was chosen by the Palestinian people through democratic elections.

    "Unfortunately ... there are many countries, in Europe and in our region, want us to make concessions, which is totally rejected by our people," he said.

    Hamas, which was involved in many suicide attacks against Israel in the past years of uprising, is still listed as a terror group by Israel, the United States and the European Union. Enditem