PA finance minister: "We pay a modest sum to the prisoners' families while they are in prison, and when they are released, we pay them a set sum as a salary for six months"
"[PA] Minister of Finance and Planning Shukri Bishara said… regarding the deduction of the prisoners and Martyrs' (Shahids) allowances (mukhassasat) from the tax money (referring to the Israeli law to deduct terror salaries from PA tax money; see note below –Ed.) that since the establishment of the PA there exists a legal obligation to pay these allowances, with the knowledge of the states that oversaw the signing of the Oslo Accords, among them the US, and in an arrangement with the Red Cross - and Israel knew about this. Now, the danger in the Israeli decision is not only in the sum that will be confiscated but also from a legal aspect, as it turns the payment to the prisoners' families into a criminal act, and this puts us in a problematic legal position that we must act against… He also said: 'We have a humanitarian and ethical plan, most of which relates to those who have served over 5 years in prison. We pay a modest sum to the prisoners' families while they are in prison, and when they are released, we pay them a set sum as a salary (rawatib) for six months, that ends the moment they begin to work.’"
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 on July 2, 2018.
During the parliamentary vote, 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]
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 on July 2, 2018.
During the parliamentary vote, 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]