RAMALLAH, Aug. 1 (Xinhua) -- A senior Palestinian official on Thursday accused Israel of trying to keep international organizations away from the Palestinian territories.
Ahmad Majdalani, the Palestinian Minister of Social Development, said in a meeting held in Ramallah with the regional director of the World Food Programme (WFP) Muhannad Hadi, "we are eager for having international presence in the state of Palestine."
"We are always careful to keep all global organizations and United Nations agencies acting as an international umbrella because the occupation (Israel) is trying to keep these organizations away," Majdalani said.
The minister said in an official statement issued by his office that the Palestinian side "will exert every possible effort to keep the WFP acting in the Palestinian territories.
"We will act properly throughout our ties and contacts with countries to ensure the needed financial support for the organization," he said.
Majdalani also called on the international organizations not to deal with the "illegal" rule of the Gaza Strip, referring to Islamic Hamas movement, which had violently seized control of the coastal enclave in 2007.
The WFP announced last year that it decided to decrease its food aid provided to 190,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank due to the lack of funding and after the United States cut its aid to the UN agencies.
Meanwhile, Hadi said the WFP is basically depending on voluntary contributions, adding that the strategic plan provided by the donors was reduced compared with past years.
