(Bloomberg) -- U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said she has urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to loosen restrictions on the West Bank that she believes hurt both Palestinians and Israelis.
“I've written to the prime minister to discuss my concerns about the West Bank and actions that Israel has taken that I believe are seriously impairing the West Bank economy, reducing income and also at the same time having an adverse impact on Israel,” Yellen said at a press conference in Sao Paulo.
The Treasury chief said Israel's decision to block West Bank residents with work permits from entering Israel was not only damaging to Palestinians but also to Israeli companies relying on that source of labor. She said she was also concerned about barriers to movement within the West Bank, which ultimately restrict commercial activity in the area.
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In prepared remarks at the top of her press conference, Yellen said she had called on Netanyahu to reinstate Palestinian work permits and reduce barriers to commerce within the West Bank.
Yellen spoke at the outset of a gathering of Group of 20 finance ministers in Brazil.
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