Doha: Qatar, represented by the Qatar Development Fund (QDF) and the Palestinian authority yesterday signed an agreement under which Qatar supports to the Palestinian government with $100m as an interest-free loan to be allocated for the developmental projects according to the priorities of the Palestinian government.
QDF General Managaer Khalifa Jassim Al Kuwari signed for the Qatari side while Chief Negotiator of the Palestinian Authority Saeb Erekat signed for the Palestinian side.
The loan, which will be received by the Palestinian authority in one payment, was approved in conjunction with the current visit of the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to Doha.
On this occasion, Dr Saeb Erekat, on behalf of President Mahmoud Abbas and the Palestinian people, extended thanks to the Emir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the government and people of Qatar for their support to the Palestinian issue, not only in the financial field, but also in the political, diplomatic and media fields and for enabling the Authority to continue its efforts to defend the Palestinian people.
Qatar has always been pioneering in goodness, he said adding that it was the first state to help in the reconstruction after the destruction done by the Israeli war machine in the Gaza Strip. He explained that this loan is a kind Qatari response to the Palestinian request for assistance, adding that this amount is not a part of the financial safety net approved recently by the Arab summit. QNA
