Abbas gives over $42,000 to family of murderer of 2 Israelis
After family of murderer of 2 Israelis falls short on payment to buy a new house, PA Chairman Abbas himself steps in to donate the remaining sum - over $42,000
Two Israelis, Rabbi Nehemiah Lavi and Aharon Bennett, were stabbed to death while walking in the Old City of Jerusalem on Oct. 3, 2015. The murderer was 19-year-old Muhannad Halabi. He also seriously injured Bennett’s wife, Adele, and their 2-year-old son in the attack before he was shot and killed by Israeli police.
For the PA, murderer Halabi is a hero. Right after Halabi’s murderous attack, Palestinian Media Watch documented the PA and Fatah’s great praise and admiration for the murderer. The gestures of appreciation of the killings included naming a street and sports tournaments after the murderer, bringing soil from the Al-Aqsa Mosque to his grave, and repeated honor and approval expressed by top PA and Fatah officials.
Now, PA Chairman Abbas has conveyed the PA’s admiration for the murderer yet again and rewarded his family by stepping in to help them buy a house. Abbas granted the family 30,000 Jordanian dinars – over $42,000 – to complete their purchase of a house. To hand over the money, Abbas sent another avid fan of terrorist murderers, Ramallah District Governor Dr. Laila Ghannam.
Meeting with the murderer’s family, Ghannam stressed that Abbas himself had instructed that the matter be solved “so as to protect the dignity of the family”:
Posted text: “Ramallah and El-Bireh District Governor Dr. Laila Ghannam gave the family of Martyr Muhannad Halabi (i.e., terrorist, murdered 2) a sum of 30,000 Jordanian dinars (over $42,000 -Ed.) today, Sunday [June 6, 2021], which was provided by His Honor President Mahmoud Abbas, in order to complete the amount needed to purchase the home of the family, whose home the occupation destroyed. This was during a meeting that District Governor Ghannam held in the presence of the Martyr’s parents and the family’s lawyer…
District Governor Ghannam emphasized that the meeting took place under the instructions of His Honor the president in order to resolve the matter of the home of Martyr Muhannad Halabi’s family, so as to protect the dignity of the family, and out of appreciation for the role of the committee that worked diligently to raise money to rebuild the home. She noted that the president’s instructions to Head of [PA] General Intelligence Majed Faraj were clear: Resolve the matter once and for all.
The district governor thanked the president, who is dedicating special attention to the families of the Martyrs, prisoners, and fighters, and emphasized that this is not foreign to His Honor [Abbas], as he is the compassionate father of all our people. She called on all the citizens, media outlets, and activists on social media to strive for precision when reporting news items, and to take them from their source…
The Martyr’s family thanked His Honor the president and all those who donated to complete this matter and to pay the amount that was left to pay the owners of the home.”
[Facebook page of Ramallah and El-Bireh District Governor Laila Ghannam, June 6, 2021]
After Halabi’s attack, as is Israel's policy, Israel demolished the house he was living in so as to deter other Palestinians from carrying out future terror attacks.
According to the murderer’s sister, 130,000 Jordanian dinars ($183,359) were donated to the murderer’s family, so they bought a home worth that sum. However, they received only 100,000 dinars, while the remaining 30,000 was given to families of other “Martyrs.” Growing impatient, the sellers of the home filed a lawsuit against the Halabi family, and therefore Abbas stepped in and gave them the remaining 30,000 dinars to finalize the purchase of the house. [YouTube channel ”Gaza”, May 29, 2021]
Israel carries out demolitions of terrorists' houses. According to the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, "Demolition orders are issued only against the residences of terrorists who commit the most serious offenses" and it is "an act of deterrence meant to discourage Palestinians from carrying out future terror attacks so as to minimize their number.” (MFA website)