Staff Reports
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas stood at a Fatah gathering and loudly asked Israel — and by extension Western donors — for roughly $5 billion in tax and customs revenue. That asking is shocking on its face, but it grows worse when you hear what watchdogs say the Palestinian Authority has already spent: more than $5 billion on so-called “pay-for-slay” payments to terrorists and their families since 2011. The moment is raw and revealing: a leader asking for fresh cash while his government funnels huge sums to the very violence that fuels the conflict.
Why this matters: money, morality, and mixed priorities
At the heart of the issue is a simple question: who gets the money? President Abbas publicly insists funds are needed for civil servants and “prisoners” — a word he uses for imprisoned or dead terrorists — yet the PA’s track record shows large, continued payouts to attackers. That is not charity. It’s an incentive structure that rewards violence. Taxpayer dollars, whether collected by Israel or given by Western governments, should never end up as bounties for murder and mayhem.
The cover story and the real ledger
For years, officials claimed payments had been halted or reformed. The ledger tells another story. Independent monitors tracking PA budgets report steady if not rising transfers to convicted attackers and the families of deceased jihadis. Even if some officials prefer euphemisms like “martyrs” or “prisoners,” the money flows are plain: the PA has prioritized payouts that glorify and sustain violence over investing in basic services or reconciliation.
What the West should demand before writing another check
Western governments and Israel do not have to be naive. If cash is going to leave the coffers of taxpayers, there must be ironclad conditions and transparent accounting. That means independent audits, on-the-ground oversight, and legally binding guarantees that funds will go to health care, schools, and infrastructure — not death rewards. If those conditions can’t be met, the sensible course is to withhold funds and reroute humanitarian aid through vetted, neutral channels.
President Abbas’s ask is not a plea from an underfunded state actor so much as a negotiation tactic shrouded in bad faith. The public should not be asked to underwrite a system that pays killers while insisting the money will be used for “public employees.” It’s time for accountability, clear terms, and the end of funding that amounts to a subsidy for violence. If the PA wants outside aid, it must prove it’s severing the financial rewards for terrorism — not asking for more cash to keep the scheme going.
