Abbas: “The Martyrs and their families are sacred, [so are] the wounded and the prisoners. We must pay all of them”

Official PA TV, broadcast of PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas’ speech to the PLO Central Council

PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas: "I say this to everyone – the salaries of our Martyrs, prisoners, and wounded are a red line. They [Israel] try by all means, and exert pressure by all means, and they continue to exert: 'It cannot be that you will pay.' And they’ll even deduct our money that’s in their hands. They’ll deduct from it the amount that we pay to the Martyrs. We have said that this is a red line and we will not allow [it]. From 1965 until now, this matter is sacred to us. The Martyrs and their families are sacred, [and so are] the wounded and the prisoners. We must pay all of them. If one penny remains in our hands it is for them and not for the living.
I say to you- To all the plotters: Do as you wish and decide as you wish. For our people is capable of resolve to continue its path towards freedom and independence… The ‘deal of the century’ (refers to US President Donald Trump’s as yet unpublished Middle East peace plan –Ed.) is still being talked about. ‘We will prepare the deal of the century for you.’ ‘We will present you with the deal of the century.’ A month later – the deal of the century. Two months later – the deal of the century. Three and six [months] later - You haven’t presented it. Tell me, the deal of the century – what remains of it? What remains of the deal of the century? Jerusalem – you have swallowed it and transferred your embassy to it. The refugees and the right of the refugees – you have finished with them and closed UNRWA (UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East), and said with great insolence that the refugees number 40,000. Damn you (Literally this insult means “May your house be destroyed,” meaning anything from “Damn you” to “Come on now!”), what 40,000? The refugees who left Palestine in 1948-1949 were 950,000. 950,000. Now they are 6 million...
In any case, the Balfour Promise (i.e., Declaration) passed, and you saw and heard and read that the Balfour Promise is the beginning. And every day we see the lines of the Balfour Promise before us. I like to talk a lot about the Balfour Promise, and I say to you that this promise is the foundation of the problem. If the Balfour Promise passed, the deal of the century will not pass. Thank you.”
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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]