Bills
| 3.23.22

Should the Palestinian Authority Not Get Foreign Aid Unless it Stops Paying Rewards to Terrorists? (S. 1697)

Do you support or oppose this bill?

What is S. 1697?

(Updated August 26, 2021)

This bill — known as the Taylor Force Act — would prohibit foreign aid from being made available to the West Bank and Gaza unless the State Dept. certifies that the Palestinian Authority (PA) is taking steps to end violence and terrorism against Israeli citizens committed by individuals under its jurisdiction. The State Dept. would also have to certify that the PA has terminated payments for acts of terrorism against Israeli citizens to any individual convicted and imprisoned for such acts, to any individual who died committing such acts, and to the individual’s family members. It would also have to certify that laws or systems using the length of the prison sentences for terrorism to determine compensation are eliminated.

The bill would also urge the State Dept. and the U.S. delegation to the U.N. to encourage other countries to also call for an end to these payments. Further, it expresses support for the creation of a general welfare system for Palestinians.

This bill is named after Taylor Force, a 29 year old former U.S. Army officer who was part of a Vanderbilt University tour group visiting Israel when he was stabbed and killed by a Palestinian terrorist in March 2016. Another 10 tourists were wounded. The PA’s Fatah faction, of which Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is a member, praised the terrorist as being a “heroic martyr” and hasn’t condemned the attack.

Argument in favor

The U.S. shouldn’t be providing foreign aid to the Palestinian Authority when the organization is paying monetary rewards to terrorists and their surviving family members. This bill ends that.

Argument opposed

The U.S. needs to provide aid to the Palestinian Authority even if the State Department can’t certify that they’re taking steps to end violence against Israelis and paying terrorists.

Impact

The Palestinian Authority; and the State Department.

Cost of S. 1697

A CBO cost estimate is unavailable.

Additional Info

In-Depth: Sponsoring Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) introduced this bill to cut off funding to the Palestinian Authority if it continues to pay monetary rewards to terrorists and their surviving family members:

“This legislation shines a light on a very real problem. Why is the Palestinian Authority paying young Palestinians to commit acts of terror against innocent Americans like Taylor Force or Israelis? The Palestinians need to decide — do they condemn these horrible acts or do they reward them? You can’t be a partner in peace when you are paying people to commit terrorist acts. The choice the Palestinians make will determine the type of relationship they have with the United States in the years to come.”

The State Department announced on September 14 that the administration “strongly supports” this legislation, which it called “a consequence of Palestinian Authority and Palestine Liberation Organization’s policy of paying terrorists and their families.” It added that President Donald Trump has raised this issue with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas during meetings in Washington and Bethlehem.

The chief representative of the Palestinian General Delegation to the U.S. called this legislation “misinformed and counterproductive” and described the PA’s program as intended “to support families who lost their breadwinners to the atrocities of the occupation, the vast majority of whom are unduly arrested or killed by Israel.”

This legislation passed the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on a 17-4 vote. It has the support of 25 bipartisan cosponsors, including 17 Republicans and eight Democrats.


Of Note: The PA has a system that incentivizes terrorism by paying monthly stipends of as much as $3,500 to Palestinians who commit acts of violence and to their families. The payment amount depends on the length of the jail sentence they receive for the crime.


Media:

Summary by Eric Revell

(Photo Credit: chetanyarobinson / Flickr)