Palestinian so-called martyr. (Abed Rahim Khatib/Flash90) Abed Rahim Khatib/Flash90
Palestinian so-called martyr

The PA has also taught Palestinians that the mothers of Martyrs are “the most beautiful” and “the most exalted” because “they taught their children that victory is not achieved through words and slogans but through strong red blood.”

By Nan Jacques Zilberdik, Palestinian Media Watch

There is “nothing more precious” than when your son dies as “a Martyr for the homeland.”

That is what the Palestinian Authority (PA) expects parents to feel when their children are killed during their terror attacks, and that is the message the PA expects parents to publicly declare and pass on to others.

“The mother of Martyr Salameh, like all the mothers of the Palestinian Martyrs, looks at her son for the last time. She holds on and considers her son a Martyr for the homeland, which there is nothing more precious than it. [emphasis added,” Official PA daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, Nov. 6, 2022.

The PA presents Palestinian parents, and especially mothers, as possessing a unique power based on an Islamic religious belief that enables them to smile when their terrorist children die, and rejoice over their “wedding” to the 72 virgins in Paradise, rather than marrying their betrothed in real life.

The official PA daily said this is “an ability that is inherited by the Martyrs’ mothers,” who are different than other mothers: “The Martyr’s mother pushed her way between his friends in the hospital halls, and with a smile that did not leave her face called out: ‘Our groom is handsome, do not say he’s dark-skinned, where is the groom?’ This is an ability that is inherited by the Martyrs’ mothers. They deviate from the rules of farewell and demonstrate such endurance while bidding farewell to their sons.”

This particular character trait in Palestinian women has been highlighted by Fatah Central Committee member Abbas Zaki as Palestinian Media Watch has exposed. Zaki praised Palestinian women for not grieving when losing their loved ones as do other women.

“Palestinian women are not like any other women in the world. All [the other] women worry about their loved ones, their children, and their husbands much more, and when they die even a natural death, [the women] tear at their cheeks and go crazy, [and call] “Allahu Akbar.” The Palestinian women, due to all the suffering and massacres that they have seen, view their children as insignificant compared to the homeland. [They] have seen great people die for the cause, and all they do is make sounds of joy for the Martyrs, be proud of Martyrdom, and sing for the grooms.” Official Facebook page of Fatah Central Committee member Abbas Zaki, April 29, 2021.

The above text claiming “nothing is more precious” than when one’s son dies a “Martyr,” was part of a report in the official PA paper entitled “the supreme wedding,” which told the story of Farouq Salameh — a 28-year-old Palestinian terrorist and senior commander of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror organization who was involved in the murder of Israeli Police officer Noam Raz in Jenin on May 13, 2022. When Israeli security forces attempted to arrest Salameh, he shot at them and was killed by return fire.

Salameh was engaged and just two days away from his wedding, but instead, guests attended his Martyr funeral, which in Palestinian Islam is considered his “wedding” to the 72 virgins in Paradise. The article in the official PA daily referred to it as: “The most supreme, most festive, and loftiest wedding of a groom who was not present at his wedding celebration.”

The PA has also taught Palestinians that the mothers of Martyrs are “the most beautiful” and “the most exalted” because “they taught their children that victory is not achieved through words and slogans but through strong red blood,” and ”that the land will not be liberated until it is saturated with the blood of its sons”:

Official PA TV host: “Good evening. The most sacred mothers are the Martyrs’ mothers. They are the most beautiful mothers because they taught their children that victory is not achieved through words and slogans, but through strong red blood. They are the most exalted mothers because they taught their children that the land will not be liberated until it is saturated with the blood of its sons. If mothers are a school for preparing the generations, then the Martyrs’ mothers are a special school that brings up heroes who honor their nation and their homeland. … Mother’s Day greetings to all the mothers and to the Martyrs’ mothers. Wishing you all the best.” — Official PA TV, March 21, 2022, PA TV broadcast this message on Palestinian Mother’s Day, March 21, 2022.

The author is a senior analyst at Palestinian Media Watch, where a version of this article first appeared.

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