RAMALLAH, November 09, 2026 (WAFA) — Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa opened the Cabinet’s weekly session on Monday by focusing on the urgent needs of our people in the Gaza Strip. He stressed that sustained efforts and coordination with international institutions and various partners were continuing in order to bolster relief operations.
The Cabinet renewed its repeated calls on the international community to shoulder its responsibilities and take effective action to halt the humanitarian catastrophe facing our people in the Gaza Strip, as they enter their fourth winter in dilapidated tents that offer no protection from the cold and rain.
"Our Palestinian people," the Cabinet emphasized, are enduring extremely harsh living conditions, without even the most basic requirements for a dignified human life, as the Israeli occupation continues to prevent the entry of humanitarian aid and essential materials and supplies for shelter and reconstruction, amid international silence over this aggravating suffering.
The Cabinet also called on all local and international parties to facilitate the work of Palestinian Government teams in the Gaza Strip, thereby helping to alleviate the suffering of our people. It stressed the need for cooperation among all parties and for ensuring that field relief programmes are not obstructed, particularly as government teams are carrying out urgent field interventions, including establishing shelter centers, repairing water networks, rehabilitating infrastructure, and providing essential needs.
In another context, the Cabinet approved the distribution of 2025 revenues from road transport fees and fines (traffic department revenues and traffic violations), amounting to NIS 184 million, among municipalities, village councils, and refugee camps. The distribution will take into account urgent priorities, particularly strengthening support for areas threatened with Israeli dispossession and demolition, the Jordan Valley, Jerusalem, and areas behind Israel’s Annexation and apartheid Wall. A total of NIS 92 million will be distributed in instalments in accordance with the approved criteria, while an equivalent amount will be allocated to infrastructure projects for local government units through the Ministry of Local Government.
The Cabinet also submitted to the President a draft decree-law on general amnesty, which, upon its issuance, would constitute the first general amnesty law in Palestine since the establishment of the Palestinian National Authority.
The proposed law would terminate criminal proceedings pending before the courts for offences covered by its provisions and reduce the number of pending criminal lawsuits, thereby accelerating judicial proceedings in cases not covered. This would not affect victims’ rights to seek compensation or enforce civil judgments issued in their favour. The law excludes most serious offences from eligibility for amnesty, including crimes committed against security of the State, murder, and economic crimes.
The Cabinet also approved a memorandum of understanding between the Palestinian Industrial Estates and Free Zones Authority (PIEFZA) and the Federation of Arab Industrial Cities and Zones (FAICZ), aimed at supporting and developing Palestinian industrial estates and strengthening Arab industrial and investment integration.
It also ratified the bilateral agreements signed between Palestine and the member states of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) concerning agricultural products, with a view to boosting Palestinian exports to a number of European countries.
The Cabinet also approved a memorandum of understanding between the Palestinian Industrial Estates and Free Zones Authority and the Arab Union for Industrial Estates and Zones, aimed at supporting and developing Palestinian industrial estates and strengthening Arab industrial and investment integration.
It further ratified the signed bilateral agreements concerning agricultural products between Palestine and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) member states, with the aim of boosting Palestinian exports to a number of European countries.
The Cabinet also approved Sunday, November 15, 2026, as an official holiday marking the Declaration of Independence.
K.T
