Palestinian President Claims To End System Of Payments To Jailed Terrorist Families
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
RAMALLAH/JERUSALEM (Worthy News) – Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas issued a decree Monday “to end” a system of payments to families of Palestinians imprisoned or killed after carrying out attacks against Israel, but critics called it window dressing as disbursements would continue under a new scheme.
The payments, dubbed “pay for slay” by commentators who say it rewards “the families of terrorists,” have been a longstanding source of friction with the United States.
Amid pressure, Abbas agreed to sign a decree stating that families of prisoners and slain attackers who require welfare assistance will be eligible for stipends “based solely on their financial needs,” as is the case with other Palestinians.
The initiative to cancel the stipends had been in the works for years, and its pilot program was “even quietly launched” toward the end of the administration of previous U.S. President Joe Biden, U.S. and Israeli sources say.
The Palestinian Authority (PA) presented the reform to the United States at the start of Biden’s administration over four years ago to bring it into compliance with legislation adopted by the U.S. Congress in 2018, Worthy News learned.
The so-called “Taylor Force Act” suspended American aid to the PA as long as it continued granting the controversial welfare payments. It was not immediately clear when and if the aid would resume under President Donald J. Trump’s administration, which had been critical of government spending.
SUSPENDING OPERATIONS
Trump effectively suspended operations of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) over alleged misspending of at least hundreds of millions of dollars.
Abbas signed the decree while the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to rule this year on whether American victims of terrorism can sue the PA and its international arm, the Palestine Liberation Organization, for “damages” due to Ramallah’s payments program, Israeli commentators said.
The PA did not address the case but said the decree was made partly to “strengthen the status of the state of Palestine” in the United Nations and other international bodies.
It was also aimed at gaining “further international recognition” and “restoring international aid programs that were suspended in the past year.” The move was also designed to stop “the illegal deductions” that Israel made from taxes it gathered on behalf of the Palestinian Authority, the decree added.
However, Israel did not appear in a hurry to resume payments. Israel’s Foreign Ministry dismissed the decree “as a new fraudulent exercise by the PA, which intends to continue making payments to terrorists and their families through other channels.”
Sources familiar with the Arabic text of the decree pointed out that it still says that “under no circumstances will the salaries of martyrs and prisoners be harmed” and “all families who benefited from the previous system will continue to enjoy the same criteria without discrimination under the new welfare programs.”
DECISION POSTPONED?
Israeli law requires the government to conduct a review of the PA’s prisoner payment system at the beginning of every calendar year, according to experts.
Analysts say that could enable Jerusalem to wait until early next year before deciding whether Ramallah complies with Israeli legislation targeting the PA payment system.
Observers say that despite the decree, many families of prisoners and slain attackers who were receiving government stipends will continue to receive financial aid due to widespread poverty in the West Bank, also known as Judaea and Samaria.
Poverty has increased since October 7, 2023, when Israel ended its permit system for over 100,000 Palestinians working in Israel and settlements — a key component of the West Bank’s economy.
Israel’s government suggested it decided to target extremists among Palestinians after Hamas fighters killed 1,200 people and abducted some 250 others in Israel more than 16 months ago.
It was described as “the worst atrocity” against Jews in Israel since the Holocaust, also known as the Shoah.
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