In an exclusive interview with i24NEWS on Thursday, Jenin’s governor defended the controversial Palestinian practice of paying stipends to terrorists and their families. Akram Rajoub compared the practice to social security payments made by Israel to the son of the Jewish extremist who assassinated Israeli premier Yitzhak Rabin in 1995.

“The assassin of Yitzhak Rabin, the prime minister of Israel, is Yigal Amir. He is Jewish, Israeli, not Arab, not a Palestinian and not a Muslim. And the government of Israel pays money to his son. This is the government of Israel,” Rajoub said.

“They pay him social security benefits. Isn’t it the support for terror? Why is it ok for them to pay to somebody they described as number one terrorist in the occupation state, they fund his family and it is permissible for a state to give money… And while the Palestinian people, whose sons are striving for freedom of their state, it is forbidden for our Palestinian Authority to fund the family of the martyr?”

Rajoub is a member of Fatah’s Revolutionary Council. He was in Israeli prison for 13 years between 1981 and 1994.

The Palestinian Authority (PA) hands out generous rewards to Palestinians who carry out bombings, stabbings and other attacks against Israeli civilians and soldiers, as well as to the families of the assailants. The practice, often dubbed “pay for slay,” has been widely condemned as encouraging terrorist attacks.

“PA will not stop the transfer of funds. And let me remind you… President Abbas made it clear that the Palestinian authority will not stop funding the families of our martyrs even if we are down to the last penny.”

“There will be a reaction to every action. Every move Israel takes against the prisoners will be met with our response. If Israel pushes us to extremes, it will come back to haunt it.”

Jenin, a flashpoint city in the Palestinian-controlled area of the West Bank, has in recent months seen many clashes between the Israeli military and Palestinian gunmen, including members of the Lions’ Den terrorist group.

Rabin, one of the architects of the Oslo Accords between Israel and the Palestinians, was assassinated by Amir, a right-wing Israeli extremist, in 1995 – a move that some point to as the derailing of the best hope for peace between the two sides.