Sa’ar thanks Trump admin for confirming PA’s ‘pay-for-slay’ policy continues

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar on Wednesday thanked the Trump administration for its “moral clarity” after a newly published State Department report confirmed that the Palestinian Authority continues to pay “salaries” to jailed terrorists and relatives of slain terrorists.

The P.A. “continues to pay Palestinian terrorists and their families, in violation of the Taylor Force Act” passed by Congress in 2018, Sa’ar tweeted.

The report to Congress, which was obtained and first reported on by the Washington Free Beacon and made public on Tuesday, states that, “according to information publicly released by Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar during the reporting period, during calendar year 2025 the P.A. provided $156 million (NIS 488.5 million) in payments and benefits to Palestinian terrorists and their families.”

A reform of the “pay-for-slay” policy announced by P.A. chief Mahmoud Abbas in February “fails to end specific payments and benefits for Palestinian terrorists and their families [and] is not compliant with the provisions of the Taylor Force Act,” it adds.

Sa’ar tweeted on Wednesday, “In 2025, the P.A. provided $156 million in ‘Pay-for-Slay.’ This is distorted!” He added, “I call on the international community: stop whitewashing ‘Pay-for-Slay’!”

In a separate statement, the Foreign Ministry accused the P.A. of paying “for murder by the millions.”

"$156 M in payments to terrorists and their families. Terrorists who carried out deadly attacks are rewarded, some receiving $350K+ in salaries plus monthly stipends of $2,541,” the ministry tweeted.

“This is blood money and an incentive for terror. Stop Pay-for-Slay,” it said.

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich on Monday announced that Jerusalem has again withheld tax revenues from the Palestinian Authority this month due to Ramallah’s support for terror.

In a statement cited by Arutz 7, the Finance Ministry said that of more than 740 million shekels ($200 million), some 590 million shekels were deducted to cover debts owed by the P.A. to the Israel Electric Corporation, as well as to “water and environmental corporations.” The ministry said deductions were also made for funds that Ramallah intended to transfer to terrorist elements.

“We will not transfer funds that ultimately reach terrorists who harm Israeli civilians,” said Smotrich. “Our policy is clear: every shekel intended to encourage terrorism or hostile activity will be offset and stopped. At the same time, we are acting responsibly to ensure that the funds are directed toward safeguarding the vital interests of the State of Israel.”

He added, “Whoever chooses to fight the State of Israel in the international arena and to support terrorism will bear the price.”