PA PM Hamdallah: “The first salaries that we will pay are the salaries of the Martyrs and the prisoners”
Headline: “Hamdallah: The salaries of the families of the Martyrs and the prisoners will be paid first”
“Interim [PA] Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah said in his speech at the ceremony launching the Arab Training Program that is being organized by the National School for Management: ‘With new aggression, Israel has deducted the salaries of the families of the prisoners and the Martyrs (Shahids) from the Palestinian tax money (refers to implementation of Israel's Anti “Pay-for-Slay” Law to deduct terrorist salaries; see note below –Ed.). This is in order to increase the strangulation and tighten the siege on our people financially and economically, and in order to destroy our ability to fulfill our obligations. We have emphasized and still emphasize that we are capable of overcoming the current crisis and strengthening our national enterprise through popular unity around His Honor [PA] President Mahmoud Abbas. We say to them that in accordance with President Mahmoud Abbas’ instructions, the first salaries that we will pay are the salaries of the Martyrs and the prisoners (today or tomorrow) [parentheses in source], and with patience and cooperation we will soon be able to pay part of the public employees’ salaries.’”
Israel's Anti "Pay-for-Slay" Law - 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]
“Interim [PA] Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah said in his speech at the ceremony launching the Arab Training Program that is being organized by the National School for Management: ‘With new aggression, Israel has deducted the salaries of the families of the prisoners and the Martyrs (Shahids) from the Palestinian tax money (refers to implementation of Israel's Anti “Pay-for-Slay” Law to deduct terrorist salaries; see note below –Ed.). This is in order to increase the strangulation and tighten the siege on our people financially and economically, and in order to destroy our ability to fulfill our obligations. We have emphasized and still emphasize that we are capable of overcoming the current crisis and strengthening our national enterprise through popular unity around His Honor [PA] President Mahmoud Abbas. We say to them that in accordance with President Mahmoud Abbas’ instructions, the first salaries that we will pay are the salaries of the Martyrs and the prisoners (today or tomorrow) [parentheses in source], and with patience and cooperation we will soon be able to pay part of the public employees’ salaries.’”
Israel's Anti "Pay-for-Slay" Law - 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]