Press Release: 40,000 Palestinian families to benefit from EU social allowances at the start of Ramadan

The Commission, through the Temporary International Mechanism (TIM), has started the payment of social allowances to 40,000 of the neediest Palestinian families. This comes on top of allowances already paid to health workers, those who have suffered a sudden drop in income and pensioners. Families have been identified from those normally supported through the social welfare scheme of the Palestinian Authority and will receive €270 each. No regular payments have been made to the families in the scheme since February 2006 due to ongoing financial crisis. The Middle East Quartet (EU, US, UN and Russia) last week supported an extension of the TIM for a three month period and an expansion of its scope.