Editing Palestinian Authority (section)

====Economic sanctions following January 2006 legislative elections====
{{main|2006–2007 economic sanctions against the Palestinian National Authority}}
Following the [[2006 Palestinian legislative election|January 2006 legislative elections]], won by [[Hamas]], the [[Quartet on the Middle East|Quartet]] (the United States, Russia, the European Union, and the United Nations) threatened to cut funds to the Palestinian Authority. On 2 February 2006, according to the [[Agence France Presse|AFP]], the PA accused Israel of "practicing collective punishment after it snubbed the US calls to unblock funds owed to the Palestinians." Prime minister [[Ahmed Qorei]] "said he was hopeful of finding alternative funding to meet the budget shortfall of around 50 million dollars, needed to pay the wages of public sector workers, and which should have been handed over by Israel on the first of the month." The US Department criticized Israel for refusing to quickly unblock the funds. The funds were later unblocked.<ref name="Ref_2006c">{{cite news | title=Palestinian fury at Israeli refusal to unblock funds | agency=Agence France-Presse | date=3 February 2006 | url=http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle.asp?xfile=data/business/2006/February/business_February58.xml§ion=business&col= | access-date=29 October 2021 | archive-date=11 May 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130511142417/http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle.asp?xfile=data%2Fbusiness%2F2006%2FFebruary%2Fbusiness_February58.xml§ion=business&col= | url-status=dead }}</ref> However, ''The New York Times'' alleged on 14 February 2006 that a "destabilization plan" of the United States and Israel, aimed against [[Hamas]], winner of the January 2006 legislative elections, centered "largely on money" and cutting all funds to the PA once Hamas takes power, in order to delegitimize it in the eyes of the Palestinians. According to the news article, "The Palestinian Authority has a monthly cash deficit of some $60 million to $70 million after it receives between $50 million and $55 million a month from Israel in taxes and customs duties collected by Israeli officials at the borders but owed to the Palestinians." Beginning March 2006, "the Palestinian Authority will face a cash deficit of at least $110 million a month, or more than $1 billion a year, which it needs to pay full salaries to its 140,000 employees, who are the breadwinners for at least one-third of the Palestinian population. The employment figure includes some 58,000 members of the security forces, most of which are affiliated with the defeated [[Fatah]] movement." Since 25 January elections, "the Palestinian stock market has already fallen about 20 percent", while the "Authority has exhausted its borrowing capacity with local banks."<ref name="Erlanger2006">{{Citation | title=U.S. and Israelis Are Said to Talk of Hamas Ouster |work=The New York Times |date=14 February 2006 | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/14/international/middleeast/14mideast.html?ei=5094&en=d28cff5caa1702fa&hp=&ex=1139979600&partner=homepage&pagewanted=print | first=Steven | last=Erlanger | access-date=21 May 2010}}</ref>