Palestinian National Council responds to cut in Israeli tax transfers: “This decision is part of the series of steps whose goal is to harm the sanctity of the struggle of the prisoners, Martyrs, and wounded”
Headline: “The [Palestinian] National Council: The deduction of the PA money is political and financial terror against our people"
“This evening [Feb. 17, 2019] the [Palestinian] National Council (i.e., the legislative body of the PLO) condemned the Israeli Cabinet’s decision to actually begin the deduction and theft of an amount equal to the allowances of the prisoners and their families and the allowances of the families of the Palestinian Martyrs (Shahids) and wounded from the tax money that Israel collects for the State of Palestine (referring to the Israeli law to deduct terror salaries from the PA tax money; see note below –Ed.).
The Palestinian National Council said today in a statement that this decision is part of the series of steps whose goal is to harm the sanctity of the struggle of the prisoners, Martyrs, and wounded, and to pressure the Palestinian leadership to stop paying them these allowances. It added that this is political and financial terror that the occupation government is implementing so that [the Palestinians] will agree to the so-called 'deal of the century' (i.e., referring to US President Donald Trump's as yet unpublished Middle East peace plan)…
The council emphasized that our people and its national institutions will fight this aggressive decision with all their strength. It also emphasized that the Palestinian prisoners are prisoners of war who struggled in order to break free of the occupation and to live with dignity in their homeland. It also emphasized that the Palestinian institutions will continue to fully take care of the prisoners and the families of the Martyrs and wounded…
The Palestinian National Council noted that while Israel is exaggerating in its hostility towards our people – and particularly the Martyrs, prisoners, wounded, and their families – it is giving material and political aid to the murderers among the Israeli soldiers and the terrorist settlers, and giving money to the Israeli prisoners and their families (sic., Israel gives no money to Israeli prisoners, and no money to family members but social security that is completely unrelated to imprisonment), and monthly allowances and compensation to Israeli civilians that were killed or wounded in hostile operations against our people (apparently referring to Israelis engaged in defending Israel –Ed.)."
Click to view bulletin
Law to deduct terrorist salaries from PA tax money - Israeli law stating that the PA payments to terrorists and the families of dead terrorists is a financial incentive to terror. The law instructs the state to deduct and freeze the amount of money the PA pays in salaries to imprisoned terrorists and families of "Martyrs" from the tax money Israel collects for the PA. Should the PA stop these payments for a full year, the Israeli government would have the option of giving all or part of the frozen money to the PA.
The law was enacted by the Israeli Parliament on July 2, 2018, and its first implementation was approved by Israel's Security Cabinet on Feb. 17, 2019, when it decided to withhold 502,697,000 Israeli shekels (approximately $138 million) from the PA. In response, the PA announced it would not accept any of the tax money collected by Israel unless it also included the frozen amount.
During the initial parliamentary vote in 2018, the law's sponsor Avi Dichter said: “The Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee received much help in its deliberations... from Palestinian Media Watch who provided us with authentic data that enabled productive and professional deliberations, nuances that are very difficult to achieve without precise data.” [Israeli Parliament website, July 2, 2018]
“This evening [Feb. 17, 2019] the [Palestinian] National Council (i.e., the legislative body of the PLO) condemned the Israeli Cabinet’s decision to actually begin the deduction and theft of an amount equal to the allowances of the prisoners and their families and the allowances of the families of the Palestinian Martyrs (Shahids) and wounded from the tax money that Israel collects for the State of Palestine (referring to the Israeli law to deduct terror salaries from the PA tax money; see note below –Ed.).
The Palestinian National Council said today in a statement that this decision is part of the series of steps whose goal is to harm the sanctity of the struggle of the prisoners, Martyrs, and wounded, and to pressure the Palestinian leadership to stop paying them these allowances. It added that this is political and financial terror that the occupation government is implementing so that [the Palestinians] will agree to the so-called 'deal of the century' (i.e., referring to US President Donald Trump's as yet unpublished Middle East peace plan)…
The council emphasized that our people and its national institutions will fight this aggressive decision with all their strength. It also emphasized that the Palestinian prisoners are prisoners of war who struggled in order to break free of the occupation and to live with dignity in their homeland. It also emphasized that the Palestinian institutions will continue to fully take care of the prisoners and the families of the Martyrs and wounded…
The Palestinian National Council noted that while Israel is exaggerating in its hostility towards our people – and particularly the Martyrs, prisoners, wounded, and their families – it is giving material and political aid to the murderers among the Israeli soldiers and the terrorist settlers, and giving money to the Israeli prisoners and their families (sic., Israel gives no money to Israeli prisoners, and no money to family members but social security that is completely unrelated to imprisonment), and monthly allowances and compensation to Israeli civilians that were killed or wounded in hostile operations against our people (apparently referring to Israelis engaged in defending Israel –Ed.)."
Click to view bulletin
Law to deduct terrorist salaries from PA tax money - Israeli law stating that the PA payments to terrorists and the families of dead terrorists is a financial incentive to terror. The law instructs the state to deduct and freeze the amount of money the PA pays in salaries to imprisoned terrorists and families of "Martyrs" from the tax money Israel collects for the PA. Should the PA stop these payments for a full year, the Israeli government would have the option of giving all or part of the frozen money to the PA.
The law was enacted by the Israeli Parliament on July 2, 2018, and its first implementation was approved by Israel's Security Cabinet on Feb. 17, 2019, when it decided to withhold 502,697,000 Israeli shekels (approximately $138 million) from the PA. In response, the PA announced it would not accept any of the tax money collected by Israel unless it also included the frozen amount.
During the initial parliamentary vote in 2018, the law's sponsor Avi Dichter said: “The Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee received much help in its deliberations... from Palestinian Media Watch who provided us with authentic data that enabled productive and professional deliberations, nuances that are very difficult to achieve without precise data.” [Israeli Parliament website, July 2, 2018]
» View analysis citing this item