Palestinian Authority Money Fuels 'Pay to Slay'

It’s called "pay to play."

When you contribute to a cause — whatever that cause may be, that is connected to a powerful person and you contribute specifically with the intent of receiving access to and influence from that person, you are paying to play.

It’s relatively common.

But have you heard of "Pay to Slay"?

It’s not common at all.

It is an invention of the Palestinian Authority (PA).

Pay to Slay is what happens when the official Palestinian government officially pays Palestinian terrorists sitting in prisons in Israel after they have been convicted for the acts of terror they perpetrated against Israel and Israelis.

The money is given to their families.

The Palestinian Authority euphemistically calls this money a salary.

This week marked the 10th anniversary of the brutal terror murders of five members of the Fogel family. Ehud Fogel who was 35 years old, his wife Ruth who was also 35 years old and three of their children, 11 year old Yoav, 4 year old Elad and baby Hadas, only three months old, were butchered in their home in March of 2011.

Remaining members of the Fogel family marked the anniversary of this horrific loss with visits to the graves and the lighting of memorial candles. Israelis — those who knew the family and those who knew only of the tragedy, joined in their mourning.

The Palestinian Authority remembered the Fogel family, too.

Their form of remembrance was to up the salaries of the two murderers now sitting in prison. They each received a 50% raise in salary.

The Palestinian Authority works off a calculus.

Terrorists’ salaries are based on the sentences that are handed out by the Israeli court.

And if a terrorist against Israelis does not live to be tried, convicted and imprisoned, if he or she dies while perpetrating their attack, the salary/stipend that goes to their family is higher than the salary awarded to living terrorists.

What kind of society pays people to murder by rewarding the murderers and their families? We’re not talking about the mafia. This is an official government, recognized by other governments and by the United Nations. The PA takes millions of dollars in aid from around the world and turns around and gives it as a stimulus package to their murderers.

Actually, it is often said that being a terrorist might be one of the best and highest paid jobs in the Palestinian Authority. You get paid and you get paid on time.

I will not honor these Palestinian terrorists by naming them, but here are the specifics of their earnings. They each will now receive 6000 NIS shekels (Israeli New Shekels) a month.

In U.S. dollars, they are earning $1800.

According to PalestinianMedia Watch (PMW), should they live to the age of 80, they will each earn over 6.5 million NIS. That sum is over a whopping $2 million dollars. Each.

As an aside, both these terrorists were sentenced to life in prison.

But should they be released before their end of days, they will continue to receive their salaries.

In 2020 the Palestinian Authority spent 512 million NIS in terrorist salaries.

That is equivalent to $159 million paid out in the form of Pay to Slay.

Aid given by other countries to help assist and stimulate development, education, democracy and peace within the Palestinian Authority is funneled to terrorists.

Granted, nowadays it is after the fact.

Under the leadership of Yasser Arafat the aid money was handed out in advance, given directly to sponsor terror units and terror activities in advance of their being carried out.

This entire scheme is simply repulsive.

It's immoral and it is unethical. And it is by no means a dirty little secret with the Palestinian Authority. Palestinian leadership is proud of this program.

They tout it as a recruiting tool for new terrorists.

Remember, the word "terrorist" is the title we attribute to those who, in cold blood, murder innocents.

The PA refers to them as "fighters" or "soldiers."

And in death, the PA refers to these monsters as "martyrs."

They treat it as an early retirement plan.

Leaders understand the impact of incentives and stimuli.

They have an agenda when they give money away, it is not because they are generous.

Take tax credits.

The government wants to stimulate charitable contributions.

So, they establish a system that allows for the taxpayer to turn a charitable gift into a tax credit. Give more to charity, pay less in taxes.

But Pay to Slay is not about charity. It's not about caring for your citizens.

It's about hating your neighbors, killing your enemy — wiping them off the face of the earth.

Pay to Slay has to be stopped.

Golda Meir, the first and so far only female prime minister of Israel, spoke in 1957 at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.

She put it this way," Peace will come when the Arabs will love their children more than they hate us."

Micah Halpern is a political and foreign affairs commentator. He founded "The Micah Report" and hosts "Thinking Out Loud with Micah Halpern" a weekly TV program and "My Chopp" a daily radio spot. A dynamic speaker, he specializes in analyzing world events and evaluating their relevance and impact. Follow him on Twitter @MicahHalpern. Read Micah Halpern's Reports — More Here.