Emir Sheikh Tamim: Gaza bill

Emir Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani in mid-January said he would order a payment of QR43.8m ($12m) to the Palestinian Authority to solve crippling electricity shortages in Gaza. The promise came following a meeting with Hamas politburo deputy chairman Ismail Haniyeh. National Committee for the Reconstruction of Gaza chairman Mohammed Al-Emadi told the acting minister of energy in Ramallah, Zafer Melhem, that Qatar will pay QR14.6m a month for three months. In October 2014 Qatar pledged $1bn to the reconstruction of Gaza at a donor conference in Cairo.