U.S. MAY CUT AID TO PALIS

US warns it may cut aid to Palestinians
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States warned on Friday it may cut back its $234 million aid earmarked for Palestinians this year because the militant group Hamas was expected to form a new Palestinian government. Washington quickly ruled out giving aid to a Hamas government after its surprise election win on Wednesday. Friday's warning went further by signaling the United States would review all money given to Palestinians through the United Nations or nongovernmental groups, in addition to direct aid to the Palestinian Authority.

"To be very clear, we do not provide money to terrorist organizations," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said. Hamas is classified by the United States as a terrorist group.

"We will take a look at the full spectrum of our aid programs," McCormack said, referring of a planned review of funds the United States gives to the Palestinians.

McCormack said everyone understood the Palestinians were poor and needed help. But he stressed U.S. financial assistance had to follow U.S. laws and policies which forbade giving money to "terrorist" groups.

In an interview with Reuters late on Thursday, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the United States would not give direct assistance to Hamas. When asked whether this meant humanitarian aid would stop too, she declined to speculate.

In Congress, there is strong opposition toward giving aid to a Hamas-led government. U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, an influential Florida Republican, said lawmakers could not support a group that called for the destruction of Israel and did not renounce violence. "I will work with my colleagues to undertake all necessary steps to prevent U.S. foreign aid from being diverted to Hamas by placing strict limitations on direct U.S. assistance to the Palestinian Authority," said Ros-Lehtinen, chairwoman of a House of Representatives subcommittee on the Middle East and Central Asia.