Former PA Minister of Prisoners Affairs admits in court that the PA tried to deceive donor countries by paying salaries to terrorists indirectly
PMW Head of Legal Strategies Maurice Hirsch: “Does the Palestinian Authority pay the salaries to the prisoners from its own money, from its account?”
Former PA Minister of Prisoners and Released Prisoners’ Affairs Ashraf Al-Ajrami: “Correct.”
Maurice Hirsch: “Yes?”
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Maurice Hirsch: “I looked at the 2017 budget of the Palestinian Authority and I didn’t see that; I saw a transfer to the PLO, because that’s what the Palestinian Authority announced in 2014 – that it no longer pays salaries to the prisoners. What is the identity of the body that pays the salaries? The Palestinian Authority from an official account of the Palestinian Authority, or another body?”
Ashraf Al-Ajrami: “Listen, that was until 2017, or 2016 actually. Because there were complaints from bodies, in fact from funders of the Palestinian Authority who did not want their money to go to the families of prisoners and the fallen. Therefore, the [Palestinian] Authority said that we will not pay money from the government’s budget, we will pay from the PLO, and then they brought the [PA] Ministry of Prisoners’ Affairs to the Commission of Prisoners’ Affairs under the control of the PLO, and then the money moved from the Palestinian Authority to the PLO – the PLO pays, not the [Palestinian] Authority.”
Former PA Minister of Prisoners and Released Prisoners’ Affairs Ashraf Al-Ajrami: “Correct.”
Maurice Hirsch: “Yes?”
…
Maurice Hirsch: “I looked at the 2017 budget of the Palestinian Authority and I didn’t see that; I saw a transfer to the PLO, because that’s what the Palestinian Authority announced in 2014 – that it no longer pays salaries to the prisoners. What is the identity of the body that pays the salaries? The Palestinian Authority from an official account of the Palestinian Authority, or another body?”
Ashraf Al-Ajrami: “Listen, that was until 2017, or 2016 actually. Because there were complaints from bodies, in fact from funders of the Palestinian Authority who did not want their money to go to the families of prisoners and the fallen. Therefore, the [Palestinian] Authority said that we will not pay money from the government’s budget, we will pay from the PLO, and then they brought the [PA] Ministry of Prisoners’ Affairs to the Commission of Prisoners’ Affairs under the control of the PLO, and then the money moved from the Palestinian Authority to the PLO – the PLO pays, not the [Palestinian] Authority.”