During its weekly meeting held in Ramallah today, the Palestinian Cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Dr. Rami Hamdallah

· Renewed its condemnation for the Israeli escalated aggression against Palestinians, storming several Palestinian cities, towns, villages, refugee camps and "area A" , including the barbaric incursion into the city of Al - Bireh, which targeted unarmed citizens leaving causalities among citizens and severe damages to their properties. The Cabinet warned against the dangerous consequences of the continuous Israeli aggression. “These attacks are part of a deliberate war campaign led by the occupation government and its army against the Palestinian citizens in all over Occupied Palestine, which illustrates Israel's disregarding of the international law in a serious and direct crime against the natural rights of our citizens to exist in their homeland,” the Cabinet stressed. 

· Warned the international community of the dangerous consequences of its continued silence towards the ongoing Israeli violations and crimes. “Israel, the Occupying Power, perceives the international silence as a green light for committing more violations of the international law and the international legitimacy, and for increasing its culture of impunity,” the Cabinet stated. “The international silence and Israel's lack of accountability will lead to more violence and instability not only in Occupied Palestine but it will also threaten regional and international peace, security, and excluded any real opportunities for reviving the political process.”

· Called upon the international community to give up its hopeless condemnations and take concrete steps against the blatant Israeli crimes of the international law. The Cabinet demanded the international community to provide immediate international protection to the defenseless Palestinian citizens and to pressure Israel, the Occupying Power, to halt its violations and crimes in Occupied Palestine and to abide by international legitimacy and law.   

· Deplored the unjustified assault on the Palestinian Broadcasting Corporation headquarters in the Gaza Strip by subversive groups, which led to damaging offices contents, sabotaging the broadcast equipment’s, and assaulting the TV employees.   The Cabinet stated, “The aggression is an assault against the Palestinian official media establishment and a subversive attack on the property of the whole Palestinian nation and the national Palestinian institutions that will remain a voice for the Palestinian rights and a vehicle to reveal the daily crimes of the illegal Israeli occupation.” The Cabinet also pointed out that those who committed this subversive and dangerous act, which contradicts the national Palestinian morals have provided a free service to the Israeli occupation, which seeks to silence the political Palestinian voice, weakens our local media vehicles, and serves the desperate attempts of the occupation to separate the Gaza Strip from the rest of Occupied Palestine. Yet, the Cabinet held Hamas, the de facto authority in the Gaza Strip, fully responsible for this aggression and crime that targeted the Palestinian rights, demanding it of an official apology. The Cabinet demanded Hamas to exert immediate efforts to prosecute and expose the attackers,  work to prevent such irresponsible and outlawed acts, and to put the national Palestinian interest above all special and factional interests. “Hamas works to self-destroy itself through its methodology that is a direct violation of the Palestinian citizens’ rights in the Gaza Strip, especially in the media sector,” the Cabinet stressed.

· Called on Hamas to adhere to the national Palestinian interests, the national Palestinian legitimacy, and implement all signed agreements under the auspices of Egypt, particularly, the latest agreement in November 2017, which focused on ending the political division, restoring the unity of the Palestinian institutions, and citizens in the Gaza Strip and the Occupied West Bank.

· Pointed out that the decision to withdraw the working staff at the Rafah crossing in the Gaza Strip was due to the recent practices carried out by Hamas. The cabinet noted that "Since the government took over the crossings in the Gaza Strip, Hamas has been working to disable the government employees’ work and responsibilities in attempts to fully control the borders and the crossing."

· Congratulated the Palestinian people and the Eastern Christian communities around the world, on Christmas wishing for prosperity, stability, security and peace. The Cabinet stated that “Christmas is an occasion to celebrate peace and love, and an opportunity to promote the importance of living in harmony calling for putting an end to the Israeli occupation and establishing an independent State of Palestine.”

· Approved to reform the national team to combat poverty in order to supervise the review and development of methodology and mechanisms for calculating poverty lines, adopt and approve the concepts and methodologies of calculating poverty lines in Palestine, in addition to preparing analytical reports and studies on poverty in Palestine. Furthermore, to supervise the preparation of the national strategy to combat poverty and follow up its implementation, as well as contributing to the development of national, sectoral and regional policies, and ensure their benefits to the poor and marginalized citizens and areas. Moreover, to ensure the integration of the national strategy to combat poverty in national and sectoral strategies.