RAMALLAH

 The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) has decided to suspend security coordination with Israel, an organization official said Thursday.

Speaking to The Anadolu Agency, Wasil Abu Youssef, a member of the PLO Central Committee, said that the committee decided on Thursday to halt security coordination with Israel.

He said that the decision boiled down to what he described as "daily Israeli violations", Israel's insistence on withholding Palestinian tax money and breaching all agreements signed with the Palestinians.

"The committee also decided to go ahead in the pursuit to attain all Palestinian rights at the international level and also take further steps in reconciliation with Palestinian faction Hamas," he added.

Israel decided to withhold up to $150 million of Palestinian tax money late in 2014. The move came hard on the heels of the decision of the Palestinian Authority to apply for membership in several international organizations, including the International Criminal Court.

Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah signed a reconciliation deal in April of 2014 after years of tension.

The deal opened the door for the formation of a unity government in the Palestinian territories.  

Hamas hails PLO decision to halt Israel coordination

Palestinian resistance group Hamas has praised decisions made by Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)'s top legislative body on Thursday, including halting security coordination with Israel.

"Many of the decisions taken by the PLO Central Committee are good and constitute a step in the right direction, and Hamas is receiving them positively," leading group member Moussa Abu Marzouq said in a statement late Thursday.

At the end of its two-day meeting, the PLO committee decided to suspend security cooperation with Israel and take further steps in reconciliation between Palestinian rival factions Hamas and Fatah.

The 1993 Washington-brokered Oslo Accords between Israel and the Palestinian Authority made it necessary for the latter to prevent attacks on Israel from the occupied territories and exchange information on security matters.

The PLO's Central Council is responsible for setting policy when the Palestinian National Council – the legislative body that brings together all Palestinians, including those in the occupied territories and Israel – isn't in session.