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To Promote Middle East Peace, Cut Aid to Palestinians
(The Hill) Sander Gerber and Brig.-Gen. (res.) Yossi Kuperwasser - What has the Palestinian Authority done with the more than $5 billion the U.S. has provided since the mid-1990s? Why is Palestinian state-building nonexistent? Why are UN agencies acting as the de facto government of the West Bank and Gaza? Palestinians who have carried out terror attacks or helped terrorists are rewarded with monetary benefits, job placement, job training and health care. Palestinian Authority laws define those who carry out terrorist attacks as "the fighting sector of society" and specifically designate the payments to them as "salaries" or "compensation" for services rendered. Unlike welfare programs, there is no means test for "pay to slay" recipients. The statutory purpose is to ensure that purveyors of violence and their families are rewarded with a good life as a gesture of appreciation for their willingness to carry out terrorist attacks. Today, foreign aid to the Palestinian Authority is part of the problem and a significant reason why peace is elusive. Sander Gerber is a fellow at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs and former vice chairman of the Woodrow Wilson Center for Scholars. Brig.-Gen. (res.) Yossi Kuperwasser is former chief of the research division of IDF Military Intelligence and former director general of the Israel Ministry of Strategic Affairs.