Israel is to ask the United States for $2.2 billion (€1.8 billion) to pay for its planned withdrawal from the occupied Gaza Strip, Israeli political sources said today.
They said the special funding would be used to pay for the pullout from Gaza and a
part of the West Bank due to begin in the middle of next month, and to relocate some 9,000 evacuated Jewish settlers to underpopulated areas of Israel.
Israel's Haaretzdaily, which first reported the request, said it would be formally submitted by aides to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon in a meeting with US National Security Council official Elliot Abrams scheduled for tonight.
The Bush administration has agreed in principle to help fund the Gaza plan, Haaretzsaid. Washington wants the withdrawals to consolidate a five-month-old truce and spur talks on a US-led "road map" for a Palestinian state alongside a secure Israel.
Israel is already among the largest recipients of US aid, getting around $2.8 billion annually. Much of the funding comes in the form of grants that are spent on US military exports.
The Bush administration has voiced misgivings at Israel's construction of a vast barrier through the West Bank, fearing it could imperil future talks with the Palestinians.
Last year, the International Court of Justice in The Hague ruled that the barrier is illegal and must be torn down.
However, Israel's cabinet yesterday approved a section of the barrier that would separate a further 55,000 Palestinian residents of Jerusalem from the city centre.