The PA, through its messages praising the murderer of four soldiers coupled with Abbas’ silence, conveys a clear message to its people: Killing Israelis is not terror, but proper Islamic behavior in honor of Allah.
On Sunday, a Palestinian terrorist drove his truck into a group of Israeli soldiers participating in an education study tour in Jerusalem, murdering four and wounding at least 15.
The official Palestinian Authority (PA) daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida referred to the attack as “a car-ramming operation” and wrote that the terrorist “died as a Shahid,” a Muslim martyr who died for Allah while fighting against non-believers.
“By calling the terrorist murderer a Shahid, the PA is telling its people that murdering the Israeli youths was sanctioned by Islam and seen as positive Islamic behavior,” Palestinian Media Watch (PMW), which monitors incitement on the Palestinian media, stated.
Similarly, the PA’s official TV channel went out of its way to focus on the religious value of the terror attack by using the term “Shahid” seven times, mostly as a replacement for the terrorist’s name; for example, “the Shahid executed the attack,” “the Shahid’s home,” “the Shahid’s sister,” and “the Shahid’s parents home.”
In contrast, the terrorist’s name, Fadi al-Qanbar, was mentioned only twice, both times informing that he had become a Shahid.
Meanwhile, PA head Mahmoud Abbas had not condemned the terror attack.
“Abbas’ silence is a strong message to Palestinians because it contrasts his fervent and vocal condemnations of the other recent car ramming terror attacks in Berlin and Nice,” the PMW stated. “By actively and vociferously condemning terror in all other parts of the world and refusing to condemn Palestinian terror against Israelis, Abbas is notifying his people that he doesn’t condemn or consider killing Israelis as terror.”
Abbas made his opinion even clearer in November 2015 after 14 Israelis were killed in a series of terror attacks. Abbas referred to the acts of terrorism as a “peaceful, popular, uprising.”
By: United with Israel Staff
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