Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas visiting the West Bank city of Jenin. Photo: Reuters/Mohamad Torokman

The Palestinian Authority (PA) has announced that those Palestinian terrorists imprisoned in Israel who must submit new forms to continue to receive their terror salaries from the PA in 2024, must immediately have this arranged through the International Red Cross.

The following is the announcement by Fatah in Bethlehem:

Posted text: “Honored prisoners’ relatives, please produce a [International Red] Cross document for those who have no sentence whose names appear below; a [International Red] Cross document accompanied by a new administrative [detention] order for the administrative detainees; and a [International Red] Cross document accompanied by a verdict for the sentenced prisoners.

This is in order to renew the monetary eligibility approval [i.e., PA salaries for terrorist prisoners] before Jan. 1, 2023 [sic., Jan. 1, 2024] …

Thank you.”

List title: “The list of prisoners whose eligibility will end during December 2023 … Administration of District 7 — Bethlehem District”

[Fatah Movement — Bethlehem Branch, Telegram channel, Dec. 4, 2023]

The accompanying pictures show a list of prisoners from the Fatah’s Bethlehem District whose period of eligibility to PA terror salaries will end in December 2023, unless they renew the forms though the Red Cross.

A similar announcement was released in Hebron by the PLO Commission of Prisoners’ Affairs — Hebron Directorate:

Posted text: “The relatives of the prisoners whose names are noted below must produce the signed [International Red] Cross documents. Respectfully.”

The pictures show a list of prisoners from the PA’s Hebron District whose period of eligibility for PA terror salaries ends in December 2023. Next to the prisoners’ names is written either “Bring a new [International Red] Cross document” or “Bring an administrative [detention] document with the [International Red] Cross’ [signature]”

List title: “The relatives of these prisoners must hurry and bring new signed [Red] Cross documents — before Dec. 5, 2023”

[PLO Commission of Prisoners’ Affairs – Hebron Directorate, Facebook page, Nov. 26, 2023]

Earlier that same month, the Hebron district sent out a similar announcement:

Posted text: “The relatives of the prisoners whose names are mentioned below must produce the [Red] Cross documents by the end of the day [Nov. 5, 2023].”

[PLO Commission of Prisoners’ Affairs — Hebron Directorate, Facebook page, Nov. 5, 2023]

Palestinian Media Watch (PMW) calls on the Red Cross to permanently cease to be the facilitator for terrorists to receive the terror rewards from the PA. Especially now, when terrorists in the Gaza Strip are holding Israeli hostages and preventing the Red Cross from seeing them, the Red Cross should at a minimum refuse to facilitate new terror salaries until the Israeli hostages are seen to and released.

PMW likewise calls on the Israeli government to demand the Red Cross not facilitate salaries to terrorists, and certainly not until the hostages are released.

The author is the founder and executive director of Palestinian Media Watch, where a version of this article first appeared.