JERUSALEM: Israeli municipality crews imposed heavy fines today on several merchants in the town of Anata, located northeast of Jerusalem, according to local sources.

Staff from the all-Israeli municipality of Jerusalem accompanied by Israeli police stormed the al-Salam suburb of Anata and issued financial fines against local traders under the pretext of the latter’s failure to pay taxes to the occupation authorities.

Israeli occupation forces have been imposing hefty financial fines on merchants in occupied Jerusalem and the surrounding towns, aiming to undermine the economy in Jerusalem and coerce Palestinians into purchasing from Israeli commercial establishments.

The fines, imposed on the alleged ground of tax evasion, are seen by many as a tactic employed by the Israeli authorities to weaken the economic resilience of Palestinian businesses in Jerusalem.

Source: Palestine news and Information Agency – WAFA