Hamas appeals to West to continue aid to Palestinian government

A top Hamas leader promised Monday that foreign aid would go only toward helping ordinary Palestinians _ not to attacks on Israel _ and said a &to=http://english.pravda.ru/world/2001/12/21/24185.html' target=_blank>Hamas government is ready to have its spending monitored.

A cut in foreign aid, which accounts for nearly half the Palestinian budget, could devastate the already battered economy, force the Palestinian Authority into a fiscal crisis and cost tens of thousands of government workers their jobs.