RAMALLAH — Israel transferred over $1 billion in taxes and customs duties it collects on behalf of the Palestinian Authority on Wednesday after a six-month hiatus.

Palestinian Civil Affairs Minister Hussein Al-Sheikh confirmed the receipt of the fund in a tweet.

“The Israeli government transfers all financial dues of the clearance to the account of the Palestinian Authority, amounting to three billion and 768 million shekels,” Al-Sheikh tweeted.

Israel had seized the funds after Palestinians had severed ties with Israel over its plans to annex parts of the occupied West Bank.

Palestinian prime minister Mohammed Shtayyeh said on Monday the Palestinians were "entitled" to the funds, expected to relieve pressure on a Palestinian economy in the grips of a severe budgetary crisis.

The taxes are a key source of revenue for the Palestinian Authority, which administers parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank. It was forced to cut the salaries it pays to tens of thousands of civil servants, worsening an economic crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic. — Agencies