Palestinians line up for dwindling cash in Gaza
Palestinians line up for dwindling cash in Gaza as banks curtail withdrawals
IBRAHIM BARZAK @ talkingpointsmemo.com
Nov 24, 2008 10:34 EST
Local banks in Gaza, under pressure from Israeli sanctions, are running out of cash and desperate Palestinians lined up at branches Monday hoping to pull money out of frozen accounts.
But most banks have sharply curtailed withdrawals over the past two weeks and some have posted signs telling customers they cannot take out any more money. The U.N. stopped distributing cash handouts to Gaza's poorest last week.
Economists and bank officials are warning that tens of thousands of civil servants will not be able to cash paychecks next month........
ENTIRE ARTICLE - http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/news/2008/11/palestinians_line_up_for_dwind.php
The United Nations deadline to figure out the future of Kosovo has come to an end on December 10. The European Union has failed to produce an agreement. So, the question now is, what happens next? As a note, you may want to read Dr. Mark Elrod’s Countdown on Kosovo.
Recently, I have come across an interesting story by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), EU positive on Balkan entry bids. The European Union is seeking to expand its membership to include western Balkan countries, which are Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro, Macedonia and Serbia. The main focal point will be the dilemma question that comes with membership. I will also focus on some of the recent and historic events in these countries as it relates to their entry bids. As a note, you may also be interested in reading my two posts related to the Balkans, The Kosovo Question and The Future of Kosovo.
The following is the reply I received from Barack Obama concerning the question of U.S. and European Union relations.
The reply begins below:
Over the past several months, the agreement over the future of Kosovo has stalled. The United Nations (U.N.) has administered Kosovo, since the 1999 North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) campaign, which drove out the Serbian Army. The discussion concerns whether Kosovo should be granted independence from Serbia and what would be the best solution.
