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‘We want to see actions not words’ on pay-for-slay, US mission to UN says

JNS sought comment from the mission after the interim U.S. envoy appeared to suggest that she thought Mahmoud Abbas had halted the program.

Dorothy Shea
Dorothy Shea, interim U.S. envoy to the United Nations, addresses the 20th plenary meeting of the resumed U.N. General Assembly Eleventh Emergency Special Session of the General Assembly on Ukraine, Feb. 24, 2025. Credit: Manuel Elías/U.N. Photo.

Dorothy Shea, the interim U.S. envoy to the United Nations, appeared to credit Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas on Friday for ending the authority’s pay-for-slay policy, despite Abbas having said publicly that he would never cancel it, “even if we have only one cent left.”

“We welcome the announcement by the Palestinian Authority that it will end the practice of offering cash payments to the families of those who carry out terrorist attacks, which for far too long has incentivized violence against Israeli civilians and set back the prospects of peace,” Shea said during the U.N. Security Council meeting.

JNS sought comment from the U.S. mission to the United Nations about Shea’s remark and whether it believes that the pay-for-slay policy is actually canceled.

“This abhorrent practice needs to end now. We want to see actions, not words,” a spokesman for the U.S. mission told JNS. “We will closely monitor that the law is fully implemented and will consult with the Palestinian Authority and the Israeli government on developments.”

Mike Wagenheim is a Washington-based correspondent for JNS, primarily covering the U.S. State Department and Congress. He is the senior U.S. correspondent at the Israel-based i24NEWS TV network.
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