Israel is deducting 52 million shekels a month to counter PA terror salaries, reveals PA prime minister

Headline: “The [PA] government discussed the 2021 budget before its ratification in a final reading next week”

“[PA] Prime Minister [Muhammad Shtayyeh] said that the Israeli deductions of the tax money rose from 41 million [Israeli] shekels [a month], which was connected to the prisoners’ salaries (rawatib), to 52 million [shekels] a month, after the addition of the salaries of the Martyrs and wounded (refers to Israel’s Anti “Pay-for-Slay” Law to deduct PA terror salaries; see note below -Ed.). He expressed his hope that the Arab and international aid, including the American [aid], will return in order to deal with the 2021 budget deficit, which reaches $1.2 billion.”

[Official PA daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, March 23, 2021]

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. 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] In accordance with the law, as of September 2021 Israel’s Security Cabinet had ordered the freeze of 1.857 billion shekels ($580.15 million) - the sum equivalent to the PA payments to terrorists in 2018, 2019, and 2020.