U.S. to pledge over $900 million in Palestinian aid

SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt, March 1 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will pledge more than $900 million for the Palestinians at a donors conference on Monday but only a third of that is earmarked directly for Gaza, a U.S. official said on Sunday.

State Department spokesman Robert Wood said the pledge amounted to $300 million to meet "urgent" humanitarian needs in Hamas-ruled Gaza after Israel's December invasion. The remaining funds would be to meet budget shortfalls of the Western-backed Palestinian Authority in the West Bank and to support economic and other reforms by the PA. None of the money would go to the militant group Hamas, he said. (Reporting by Sue Pleming)