 The World Bank says it has approved a $42 million aid package to help keep the cash-strapped Palestinian Authority (PA) running until Hamas forms the next government. The money, from an existing trust fund managed by the World Bank, will be used by the Hamas-led Palestinian Authority to meet its immediate financing needs and to avoid suspension of basic services, the international lending agency said in a statement. Bank officials said they were awaiting a decision by the quartet of Middle East mediators - the United States, the European Union, the UN and Russia - on how any future assistance would be delivered to the Palestinians once a Hamas-led government was formed. |