An Israeli court has issued an unprecedented order to freeze $13.7 million in funds allocated to the Palestinian Authority following a landmark lawsuit.
The suit was filed by British rabbi Leo Dee, whose wife and two daughters were killed in a terrorist attack in April 2023.
Dee's legal action challenges the PA’s "pay-for-slay" program, which provides financial support to prisoners and the families of those convicted of violent attacks against Israelis, arguing that these payments incentivise terrorism.
The fact that Israel releases funding to the PA, mostly from taxes collected on its behalf, has long been controversial, given accusations that the money is funnelled straight into the so-called Martyrs’ Fund.
The tax money is transferred to Ramallah every month, but there have been previous attempts to stem the flow.
For example, in 2018, the Knesset passed a law requiring that a portion of the money equal to the amount sent into the Fund by the PA be withheld. Likewise, last year, the Compensation of Victims of Terrorism Bill was passed into law, allowing victims and their relatives to file damages claims against any group offering compensation for acts of terrorism.
The ruling was the result of a lawsuit by Rabbi Leo Dee (second from left) after he lost his wife and children to a terror attack (Image: Leo Dee)[Missing Credit]
Dee’s case seeks compensation for terror victims and, significantly, aims to establish a legal precedent that could lead to more PA funds being frozen over ties to terrorist attacks. If successful, the frozen sum could be awarded to him in damages against the PA.
Supporters of the lawsuit also see it as a way to disrupt PA financial channels and its alleged support for terror.
Avi Guez, who represented Dee, said: “This court order is one of the first of its kind, setting a useful precedent for future cases.
"We will be helping other terror victims' families to sue for compensation from funds seized by Israel from the PA.
"While Hamas and its allies are using ‘lawfare’ to attack Israel in international courts, we will use Israeli law to challenge their funding of terrorism and win compensation for innocent victims like the Dee family.”
Following the ruling, Rabbi Dee urged other terror victims to take similar legal action, arguing that economic pressure on the PA could help deter future attacks.
He told MailOnline: “I am delighted we are making progress. My desire is for other families to also be suing the Palestinian Authority.
“My hope is we can bankrupt them. Since the UN is intent on continuing to fund them, we have to act independently to stop their funding and save lives.
“I want other families to sue the PA, and secure funds and I want them to know that together we can bring them down.”
The PA has yet to issue an official response, but Ramallah has previously condemned such financial freezes as a violation of economic agreements.
It comes after the Authority passed a measure to effectively end ‘pay-for-slay’, seemingly as part of a reform drive as it prepared to potentially take over governance of Gaza under now-stalled ceasefire negotiations.
PA President Mahmoud Abbas issued an order that the Martyr’s Fund be decoupled from the severity of a prisoner’s crime to remove the incentive to commit terror. Instead, funding will now be allocated at a set rate – though this does mean those with longer sentences will receive more money.
