The All-Palestinian Gathering demands a reduction in fuel prices

Hebron - Ofoq News - The new fuel prices in Palestine have raised criticism, due to the difference between them and the prices in the Israeli market, in light of the difficult economic conditions that the Palestinians are going through.

Dr. Bassam Al-Qawasmi, professor of law at Hebron University and founder of the All-Palestinian Gathering, said that the new prices announced by the Palestinian government represent, from his point of view, an additional burden on the citizen, wondering how compatible they are with the existing economic conditions.

Al-Qawasmi pointed out that the price of a liter of gasoline in Palestine, according to the prices he talked about, amounted to about 9 shekels, compared to about 7 shekels per liter of diesel in Israel, considering that comparing prices becomes more important when looking at the large difference in wage levels between the two sides.

He added that, according to what he said, the minimum wage in Israel exceeds 6,400 shekels, while the minimum wage in Palestine is 1,880 shekels, which he believes increases the burden of fuel prices on the purchasing power of the Palestinian citizen.

These criticisms come at a time when the West Bank is facing difficult economic conditions, with the continuing repercussions of the war on the Gaza Strip, a decline in economic activity and high unemployment rates, in addition to the restrictions that have affected the movement of Palestinian workers to the Israeli labor market.

Al-Qawasmi said that the government, under these circumstances, is supposed to work to help citizens and enhance their ability to withstand, and not, as he put it, impose additional burdens on them.

Al-Qawasmi also linked the issue of fuel prices to the political and institutional situation of the Palestinian Authority, criticizing the absence of an effective Legislative Council and its role in accountability and oversight of the government’s performance.

At the conclusion of his speech, he called on the government to withdraw from the new fuel prices, considering that the current economic and living conditions require taking into account the ability of citizens to bear energy and transportation costs, and not to increase the burdens on families and economic sectors.