PA considers changing policy of financially rewarding families of terrorists

The Palestinian Authority has been considering changing its policy of providing financial rewards to the families of terrorists, according to a Thursday Walla report.

"I know that intensive discussions are taking place, and there may be a significant shift in this policy," the PA's legal representative reportedly said during a compensation lawsuit filed against it, according to Walla.

"As I mentioned, the law impacts the Palestinian Authority's defense strategy.

A High Court ruling could potentially overturn the law under which this compensation claim was filed [the law allowing families of terror victims to seek compensation from the PA for financially supporting the families of terrorists], and the PA’s stance on this policy may change."

According to a recent study conducted by the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs, in 2024, the scope of the PA’s pay-for-slay payments to terrorists decreased by 30-40%.

Decrease in terrorist funding

Lt.-Col. (res.) Adv. Maurice Hirsch, a senior researcher at the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs, attributed the decrease in terrorist funding to several factors, as quoted in a recent article from The Jerusalem Post. 

“First, the decision to prevent Red Cross representatives from visiting prisons created significant bureaucratic difficulties,” said Hirsch. 

“Second, the economic pressure on the Palestinian Authority reached an unprecedented peak: new data from the Finance Ministry shows that Israel deducted about NIS 3 billion from PA funds through November 2024.”

Hirsch explained a third factor, “The ongoing fighting in the Strip has caused significant difficulties in transferring payments and producing required documents. Terrorists’ families are struggling to submit necessary forms and even receive the funds themselves.”