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Saeb Erekat on imprisoned terrorists:
"Our brave
prisoners...
We bow our
heads in admiration and honor
of the
prisoners' sacrifices [and]
for their
acts of heroism"
Itamar Marcus and Nan Jacques
Zilberdik
The Palestinian Authority often assures its people that among its top
priorities is the release of Palestinian prisoners in Israel - most of whom are
convicted for terrorist crimes including murder.
Chief PLO negotiator Saeb Erekat recently reiterated this, terming actions
of terrorist prisoners as "acts of heroism", and stating that Palestinians "bow
[their] heads in admiration and honor of the prisoners' sacrifices, for their
acts of heroism":
"Our brave prisoners, who gave and
sacrificed their freedom for Palestine and its freedom, are worthy of aid,
support, and constant activity by us in order to release them and put an end to
their suffering. The prisoners' cause is a national and central cause, and we
bow our heads in admiration and honor of the prisoners' sacrifices, for their
acts of heroism, and for their ongoing battle with the
occupation."
[Official PA daily Al-Hayat
Al-Jadida, Oct. 19, 2016]
Among the prisoners whose actions Saeb Erekat would be admiring are:
Abdallah
Barghouti
- serving 67
life sentences for preparing explosives for terror attacks in which 67 people
were murdered: Sbarro restaurant (15 killed, Aug. 9, 2001, Jerusalem), Sheffield
Club (15 killed, May 7, 2002, Rishon LeZion), Moment Café (11 killed, March 9,
2002, Jerusalem), triple attack at Ben Yehuda pedestrian mall (11 killed, Dec.
1, 2001, Jerusalem), Hebrew University (9 killed, July 31, 2002, Jerusalem), and
Bus 4 in Tel Aviv (6 killed, Sept. 19, 2002).
Ibrahim Hamed
- serving 54 life sentences for planning suicide attacks, including
the suicide bombings at Hebrew University (9 killed), Cafe Moment (12 killed),
Cafe Hillel (7 killed), Zion Square in Jerusalem (11
killed).
Abbas Al-Sayid
- serving 35 life sentences for planning two suicide bombings, one at a
Passover dinner at the Park Hotel in Netanya (30 killed, March 27, 2002) and
another outside a shopping Mall in Netanya (5 killed, May 18,
2001).
Palestinian Media Watch has documented that the PA
and PLO reward all imprisoned terrorists with generous monthly salaries and that
foreign donor money facilitates them. Click to read more about this in PMW's
latest report The PA's Billion Dollar
Fraud.
The following is a longer excerpt on the report on
Erekat's statement:
Headline: "Erekat: The prisoners' cause
is central and the activity for their release continues"
"Crowds of the
Jericho and [Jordan] Valley district expressed full solidarity with the
prisoners in the occupation's prison and resistance to the steps of oppression
against the brave prisoners. They demanded that the international community get
involved in order to put an end to the suffering of the prisoners.
A solidarity rally was held opposite the Red
Cross building in the center of Jericho, with the participation of
Secretary-General of the PLO Executive Committee [and Fatah Central Committee
member] Saeb Erekat and District Governor of Jericho and the [Jordan] Valley
Majed Al-Fatiani...
Erekat said: 'Our brave prisoners, who gave and
sacrificed their freedom for Palestine and its freedom, are worthy of aid,
support, and constant activity by us in order to release them and put an end to
their suffering. The prisoners' cause is a national and central cause, and we
bow our heads in admiration and honor of the prisoners' sacrifices, for their
acts of heroism, and for their ongoing battle with the occupation.'
District Governor Al-Fatiani emphasized that the
prisoners' cause is at the head of the priorities of [PA] President Mahmoud
Abbas, and that the president and the Palestinian leadership are making every
effort in order to put an end to their suffering."
[Official PA daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida,
Oct. 19, 2016]
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