The Israeli Cabinet on Sunday approved the release of frozen tax funds to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, officials said, in a step to bolster the moderate Palestinian leader in his standoff against the Islamic terrorist group Hamas.Prime Minister Ehud Olmert asked the Cabinet to release the funds as part of a package of moves in support of Abbas. The vote came a day ahead of Olmert's meeting in Egypt Monday with Abbas, President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt and King Abdullah II of Jordan.
The summit is designed as a high-profile display of support for the Palestinian president against his Hamas rivals, who seized control of the Gaza Strip in a brutal rout of Abbas' Fatah movement earlier this month. The infighting has left the Palestinians with two governments — Abbas' new government in the West Bank, and the Hamas rulers in Gaza.
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