9/4/06

Donors Pledge $500M for Palestinians

World donors pledged $500 million in aid for Palestinians, including $55 million for a U.N. emergency appeal for humanitarian help, organizers said.

A total of $114 million of the money pledged will go toward humanitarian aid, with the rest going to rebuilding infrastructure and other projects, said Carin Jamtin, Sweden's aid minister and host of the donors' conference held in the Swedish capital.

''The needs have never been greater in the Palestinian territories than today,'' U.N. humanitarian chief Jan Egeland said at a news conference. ''The Palestinians do not want to live on charity; (they) want to have an economy.''

Jamtin said donations not given to the emergency appeal would go to the Red Cross and other aid organizations.

[The New York Times]

No comments: