Widow of Terrorist Who Committed Deadly Jerusalem Truck-Ramming Attack to Receive $760 Lifetime Monthly Allowance From Palestinian Authority
by Ruthie Blum
The widow of the terrorist who committed Sunday’s truck-ramming attack at the Haas Promenade in Jerusalem, killing four Israeli soldiers and wounding another 15, will receive a lifetime monthly stipend as a reward for her husband’s “martyrdom for Allah,” a prominent research organization reported on Wednesday.
According to Palestinian Media Watch (PMW), Fadi al-Qanbar’s widow, a resident of the Jabel Mukaber neighborhood in east Jerusalem, will receive a total of NIS 2,900 (approximately $760) each month, in accordance with Palestinian Authority law.
PMW broke down the sum, based on the statute, as follows:
All families of “martyrs” receive a base monthly payment of NIS 1,400 ($365). Widows of “martyrs” receive an additional NIS 400 ($104). NIS 200 ($52) is paid for each of their children; al-Qanbar has four. And Jerusalem residents, such as al-Qanbar, receive an extra NIS 300 ($78).
In addition, within the next few months, al-Qanbar’s widow will receive a one-time grant of NIS 6,000 ($1,580).
In October, US Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Dan Coats (R-IN) and Roy Blunt (R-MO) introduced the Taylor Force Act — named after the American military veteran who was stabbed to death in Tel Aviv in March by a Palestinian terrorist — which would cut off funding to the PA if it continues its policy of dispensing monetary rewards for terrorism.
In an editorial the following month, the Wall Street Journal called on the incoming Trump administration to “send a powerful message” and back the bill, stating: “The truth is these payments are blood-soaked gifts from a Palestinian leadership still devoted more to destroying Israel than to building a Palestinian state.”
This week’s truck-ramming attack — for which al-Qanbar’s family will receive a monetary award — was the most serious of the latest acts of violence against Israelis in the Palestinian terror wave that began a year ago in September. Commonly known as the “lone-wolf” or “knife” intifada, it has been characterized by stabbings, car-rammings, Molotov-cocktail throwing and arson.
The victims of the attack by 28-year-old al-Qanbar, announced by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as an ISIS supporter, were: officer Yael Yekutiel, 20, and cadets Shir Hajaj, 22, Shira Tzur, 20, and Erez Orbach, 20 — all of whom were buried on Monday.
In the immediate aftermath of the attack, Palestinians took to the streets and social media on Sunday to celebrate the carnage, and many were festively handing out sweets to mark the occasion.