Death as a Martyr is “greater” than finishing high school, says senior PA official

Ramallah District Governor Laila Ghannam: "Good morning to the families of the Martyrs, whose children were supposed to celebrate their matriculation certificate (shahada) and their success in matriculation exams, but they celebrated the greater Shahada, the [Martyrdom-death]Shahada… We always call such an event (i.e., a Martyr's funeral) a ‘wedding' (i.e., to the 72 Virgins in Paradise)."

[Ramallah and El-Bireh District Governor Laila Ghannam, Facebook page, July 27, 2025]

Ramallah District Governor Laila Ghannam uses a chilling word play in her statement. The word "shahada" in Arabic means both "certificate" and "martyrdom-death"