When Palestinians tune in to the official Palestinian Authority radio station, “The Voice of Palestine,” they hear songs encouraging them to seek martyrdom in death and to sacrifice themselves for Jerusalem, the Al-Aqsa Mosque and “Palestine.” Catchy lyrics pass on the message that Palestinians are “not afraid of death,” and teach them that already in its mother’s womb, the fetus is “a proud Martyr” who has “Palestine etched on the heart”:

“Our Martyrs are convoys and our bones are mountains

They don’t surrender to the lowly

We aren’t deterred by imprisonment

Palestine is etched on the heart of the fetus

A proud Martyr in his mother’s womb

And the Arab state will remain ours—Arab, Arab Palestine We [hold] the rifles to our chests and our eyes are raised to you

Our homes are trenches and our souls are the sacrifice for you O Jerusalem, you will not remain stolen.”

[“The First Direction of Prayer” by Syrian singer Assala Nasri, Official P.A. radio station “The Voice of Palestine,” Feb. 3, 2018]

“We are working day and night to convey the facts to the world, defend Jerusalem, and defend our Palestinian cause and Palestine. We are cooperating with the brothers in the [P.A.] Ministry of Information … in uniting the Palestinian voice over the radio waves, the voice of the Palestinian people.” [Official P.A. TV, Dec. 12, 2017]

“O our land, on Land Day we salute the Martyr who fell for your sake, homeland …

We decorated [the land] with Martyrs, souls, and blood … On March 30, O day of the struggle, we rebelled against Zionism and the occupation. The Martyrs’ blood flowed in you and sang a song for you… There is nothing more precious than you, O land of Palestine. By Allah, we have sacrificed the precious Martyrs for your sake.” [Official P.A. radio station “The Voice of Palestine,” March 20, 2018]