The Right Answer for ‘Pay To Slay’

TO fight terrorism, America may have just forced a cut in aid to the most useful arm of the Palestinian Authority, its security apparatus. That may cause problems for Israel, unless Congress acts. Better yet, though, Palestinians can work to end the terrorism that’s at the root of the problem.

Reading the press, you’d get the impression the Trump administration cruelly severed what was left of America’s funding of the Palestinian Authority and, worse, deprived the Ramallah-based, Mahmoud Abbas-led body of any means to finance its security forces. That could spell trouble since the PA’s security tightly cooperates with its Israeli counterparts.

Even as the “oy vey” sighs reverberate from Jerusalem to Foggy Bottom, there are several problems with headlines like: “US cuts aid to Palestinian security bodies.” To start, it wasn’t the Trump administration that initiated last Friday’s $60 million cut to the Palestinian Authority. Rather, the Palestinians themselves demanded the US stop funding them.

Why? Congress recently added a new wrinkle to its anti-terror laws. As of Jan. 31, any entity receiving American financial assistance can be sued in America in terror-related cases. Faced with the possibility its officials could be brought to court, Ramallah decided it would simply forgo all US funding and the attached strings.

Yet many security professionals in Jerusalem and Washington are worried about weakening Ramallah’s security forces — the main victims of last week’s PA aid cut. That’s because those forces often work closely with Israel to foil terrorist plots.

True, the extent of that cooperation is a matter of debate among Israel’s security establishment, says Dore Gold, a former director general of Israel’s foreign ministry.

“If Israel has information about Hamas terrorism that could also undermine the Palestinian Authority, then it’s likely the security forces will take strong measures” to prevent it and share valuable info with the Israelis, says Gold. But, he adds, “if there are no implications for the security of the PA itself, then the cooperation is likely to be doubtful.”

Yet some help is better than none. Few deny, after all, that Israel has been able to prevent several potential deadly attacks thanks to the help of the Palestinian security forces. I’m told, therefore, that at the urging of Israeli officials the State Department and legislators on the Hill are trying to push through a waiver to the new law that would allow US support of Ramallah’s security bodies to resume.

Meanwhile, Abbas could also seek other sources of financing. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, for example, are eager to counter the increased influence of their regional rival, Qatar, which finances Hamas, the Palestinian Authority’s enemy and Gaza’s rulers. But Gulf assistance to the Palestinians has never been too reliable.

Yet there’s another side to this story: Disregarding constant pleas from top Washington officials, including Trump himself, Abbas consistently refuses to end funding of “martyrs” that knife, car-ram or shoot at Israelis. A hefty chunk of the Palestinian Authority’s budget, in fact, is used to encourage violent attacks against Israelis.

Late last year, Sen. Ted Cruz proposed leg- islation to counter Abbas’ “pay for slay” policies. It would specifically sanction Ramallah officials who facilitate payments to convicted Palestinians incarcerated in Israel on terror charges, or the families of those killed while committing violence against Israelis.

In other words, while Abbas and his government at times help to lower the flames, they also encourage them. Most of the American people’s congressional representatives understand it.

They know that Israel, an important US ally and a key bulwark of democracy in the Middle East, is under siege, both from terror attacks and politically. That was evidenced by a super majority (77-23) bipartisan Senate vote Tuesday in favor of states that oppose boycotts against Israel.

A new crop of House members — led by Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez — are pushing back. But if they, along with the Palestinians, want aid to flow again to Abbas & Co., and without the risk of lawsuits, there is a simple solution: aggressively demonstrate their resolve to end the very violence that triggers such laws.