Palestinian aid may be on the way

An exchange of letters between Washington and Brussels may pave the way for a resumption of Western aid to the Palestinians.In the May 14 letters, the United States communicated its acceptance of a plan to channel funds into an account run by Palestinian Authority Finance Minister Salam Fayyad, according to a Reuters report Thursday.The move could allow Fayyad to pay partial wages to government workers who have gone without full wages since a Western embargo on direct aid to the Palestinian Authority imposed after Hamas, a terrorist group, won P.A. elections last year. E.U. officials said they had no immediate plans to provide funds to Fayyad, but diplomats said the letters could clear the way for funds to be transferred from the Arab League and possibly European states at a later date.