Obama lifts ban on $192 million aid support to PA

Washington - US President Barack Obama has lifted a ban on financial aid to the Palestinian Authority (PA), stating that the aid was "important to the security interests of the United States".

The US Congress froze a $192 million aid package to the PA and released only $40 million after its president, Mahmoud Abbas, defied US pressure and sought to attain UN endorsement of Palestinian statehood last September.