LONDON 

Five Nordic countries urged Israeli leaders to release withheld revenues earmarked for Palestinians and to ensure the preservation of banking services between Israel and the West Bank, according to a joint statement published late Wednesday.

Like the G7 in its June 11 Apulia summit leaders’ communique, the Nordic countries called on Israel “to urgently release the withheld clearance revenues as well as to ensure that correspondent banking services between Israeli and Palestinian banks are maintained,” said the foreign ministers of Norway, Iceland, Finland, Sweden, and Denmark.

Under the terms of a deal reached in the 1990s, Tel Aviv collects tax on goods that pass through Israel into the West Bank on behalf of the Palestinian Authority (PA), and transfers monthly payments to Ramallah.

However, since last November, taxes that would be normally sent to Gaza have been frozen by the Israeli government.

“The Nordic countries are greatly concerned by the withholding of Palestinian clearance revenues, which is exacerbating the strenuous fiscal situation of the Palestinian Authority,” they added.

The foreign ministers stressed that any action weakening the Palestinian Authority or worsening the economic situation in the West Bank “must be avoided.”

They further stated that maintaining stability in the West Bank and preparing for one legitimate Palestinian government for the West Bank and Gaza is “critical” for regional security.

Israel, flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire, has faced international condemnation amid its continued offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Palestinian group Hamas.

Over 38,000 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and over 87,000 others injured, according to local health authorities.

Over eight months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, whose latest ruling ordered it to immediately halt its military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.