Following Hamas's victory in last year's Palestinian elections, the international community suspended direct aid to the Palestinian Authority government until the newly empowered Islamist organization renounces violence, recognizes Israel's right to exist and agrees to abide by previous official agreements between Israel and the Palestinians. Opponents of the suspension have decried the policy, claiming it ignited a humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian territories. But in fact, aid to the Palestinians has substantially increased since Hamas took over.

In order to bypass Hamas, Western governments simply redirected aid to the office of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who at least in theory recognizes Israel. This leaves the Palestinians as the largest recipients per capita of charitable assistance in the world.

The decline in the Palestinian economy has occurred despite the increase in foreign support, and not because of any supposed decrease in aid...