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According to a report from the Associated Press the Obama administration released $221 million in aid funding to the Palestinian Authority on Friday.
The administration told Congress it would release the funding just hours before Donald Trump's inauguration, a move that defied previous opposition from Republican members of Congress.
The funds in question come from the U.S. Agency for International Development, in order to provide humanitarian aid in the West Bank and Gaza, and to support "political and security reforms" that would help pave the way for a functional Palestinian state in the future. The funding had already been approved by Congress in 2016, but several GOP lawmakers had placed non-binding congressional holds that temporarily halted its allocation.
The AP report cites an unnamed State Department official and several congressional aides, who say the notice submitted by Secretary of State John Kerry and the administration also informed Congress that the they would be releasing an additional $6 million in funding, to be spent on climate change programs and U.N. organizations.
Read the full report here, via the Associated Press.