PA-linked body hits back at ‘baseless’ Israeli claim that ‘pay-to-slay’ still in place

The Palestinian Authority-linked body running the PA’s new welfare stipends hits back at Israeli claims that Ramallah is secretly keeping its “pay-to-slay” program intact.

The Palestinian National Economic Empowerment Institution (also known as Tamkeen) issues a rare statement insisting that it is fully complying with a February decree signed by PA President Mahmoud Abbas that nullified legislation that conditioned welfare payments on the length of a prisoner’s sentence. Israel argued that the policy incentivized attacks on Israelis.

The Tamkeen statement insists that all stipends that it gives are according to “approved international standards and solely on the basis of social need, without any consideration of an individual’s political or security status.”

Tamkeen says an internal survey — obtained in September by The Times of Israel — found that “a large number of families” that benefited from the old program no longer meet the criteria stipulated by the new needs-based policy.

Tamkeen “confirms that the payment system linked to the number of years of imprisonment has been completely and permanently abolished and is no longer in effect in any way,” the statement adds. “Claims regarding its continuation fall under the category of deliberate misinformation and falsification of facts.”

The PA-linked body says it is fully prepared to cooperate with international audits aimed at determining that the old system is no longer in place.

It reveals that it has already entered into contracts with several international auditing firms tasked with adjudicating the reform’s progress.

Tamkeen says its work is part of the PA’s broader reform initiative aimed at preparing it statehood.

“These reforms represent a sovereign national choice… and are not subject to any pressure or attempts at political blackmail,” Tamkeen claims.

“The Israeli government’s attempts to mislead international public opinion and cast doubt on the ongoing Palestinian reforms will not change the established fact that the State of Palestine is proceeding with the implementation of a comprehensive, transparent reform program that complies with international standards, despite the continued Israeli occupation,” the statement adds.