Does Biden Admin’s Proposed Aid to Palestinians Violate US Law?

President Joe Biden’s administration on Wednesday announced the restoration of at least $235 million in US assistance to the Palestinians. The aid package includes $150 million for the controversial UNRWA refugee agency, $75 million in economic aid for the West Bank and Gaza, and $10 million for peacebuilding programs. Moreover, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the US is resuming “vital security assistance programs” with the Palestinians.

However, just days before the announcement about the resumption of aid, the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office issued a report that found the US government had not properly vetted all of its Palestinian funding recipients for anti-terrorism criteria as required by law between 2015 and 2019. While a USAID spokesperson assured HonestReporting on Friday that it would only support activities that are “in accordance with anti-terrorism requirements and all relevant US laws,” serious legal questions raised by Blinken’s statement remain unanswered.

Specifically, the intention to restart funding might run afoul of legislation that restricts the US from transferring funds that would benefit the Palestinian Authority (PA) or Hamas and used to incentivize terrorism against Israeli civilians.

Taylor Force Act

First, there is the Taylor Force Act – passed by Congress and signed into law following the murder of Taylor Force, a 28-year-old US Army veteran killed in a 2016 Palestinian stabbing rampage in Jaffa. This law was enacted to prevent US taxpayer money from reaching convicted terrorists through the PA’s “pay-for-slay” program. This controversial scheme provides “salaries” to those who commit violence against Jews and Israelis, with more money being doled out on a monthly basis to terrorists who shed the most blood.

The Taylor Force Act puts strict limitations on the White House’s direct support of the Palestinian Authority, other than in certain narrowly defined cases. In principle, funds can only be transferred once the PA (1) takes steps to end acts of violence, (2) completely terminates the “pay-for-slay” practice, and (3) investigates and publicly condemns violent attacks.

Yet with regards to Washington’s new funding program, none of these conditions have been met.

Related Reading: Pay for Slay: Paying Off Terrorism

Indeed, the Palestinian Authority certainly has not put a halt to its “pay-for-slay” policy. On the contrary: In 2020, Ramallah paid at least NIS 600 million ($181 million) to terrorists, in line with PA President Mahmoud Abbas’ statement that the PA will continue its payouts to terrorists even if they are left with “one penny.” In a sign of his commitment to violence, the Palestinian president said that his people regard “martyrs” as being “stars in the sky of the Palestinian national struggle.”

Palestinian law mandates that 7 percent of the annual budget must go to paying terrorists and their families. While public records concerning this law have disappeared, Member of Knesset Avi Dichter, who is fluent in Arabic, confirmed in 2018 that the law exists. This would mean that the actual amount is much higher, and likely over NIS 1 billion ($304 million).

At this point, it is worth noting that there are three possible exceptions to the Taylor Force Act: (1) financial assistance to the East Jerusalem Hospital Network, (2) wastewater projects, and (3) children’s vaccination projects.

But although USAID did confirm to HonestReporting that the aid package includes support for the East Jerusalem Hospital Network, the spokesperson did not disclose which other organizations will receive funding, saying that additional information will be provided “as funds are awarded.”

Blinken’s statement is likewise ambiguous, omitting any reference to the PA or Hamas, instead merely citing “the Palestinian people” and naming the territories over which its leaders exercise limited and full control, respectively.

This could be an indication that the Biden Administration’s strategy will be to claim that the proposed aid does not “directly benefit the Palestinian Authority,” a primary stipulation of the Taylor Force Act. Nevertheless, it is hard to imagine how the resumption of “economic, development, and humanitarian assistance” would not directly benefit the PA.

Security Assistance

The proposed resumption of security assistance is similarly problematic in light of the Taylor Force Act. Until two years ago, the US transferred $60 million annually to the PA for its security apparatus. Indeed, the Palestinian Authority’s security forces had come to rely heavily on American aid. “American aid is at the core of the process of training Palestinian security forces,” the Palestinian police said in a 2019 statement.

This funding was cut in 2019 at the PA’s request following the passing of the Anti-Terrorism Clarification Act (ATCA). Under this law, receiving aid would place the PA under the jurisdiction of US courts, potentially exposing it to lawsuits by terror victims.

However, according to US State Department Spokesman Ned Price, the renewing of US security assistance will “advance the rule of law in the West Bank for the benefit of all through the development of professional and accountable security and criminal justice institutions.” [emphasis added]

But it is unclear who could possibly control these institutions in the West Bank other than the PA government itself. This, however, would likely amount to direct aid to the PA, prohibited by the Taylor Force Act.

HonestReporting has requested comment on the matter from the State Department and is awaiting a response.

The Consolidated Appropriations Act 2021

Moreover, the Consolidated Appropriations Act 2021 (section 7041) is an obstacle to Washington’s funding plans. Since 2014, annual appropriation legislation contains provisions that condition US aid to the Palestinians on Ramallah abstaining from initiating or actively supporting an International Criminal Court (ICC) investigation into alleged Israeli crimes against Palestinians.

Yet just last month, PA official Ahmad Majdalani admitted that the PA did indeed initiate the ICC case, and continues to support the prosecution. “We submitted three main dossiers to the court in our proposal — documentation relating to the 2014 Gaza war, settlements, and various homicides committed by Israeli soldiers against Palestinian civilians,” Majdalani said.

The PA Foreign Ministry also told the court it would provide “any assistance required…to realize justice for the Palestinian people.”

Further Reading: ICC Gives Itself Authority to Adjudicate Israeli ‘War Crimes’

Not only did they submit a formal referral to the court, but the Palestinian administration has also repeatedly provided purported evidence, and is in constant contact with the ICC prosecutor. “We are now in the stage of evaluating matters and developing an integrated plan of action, developing a complete strategy for how to work with the court,” PA Foreign Minister Al-Maliki told Palestinian television in March.

That the PA is violating the conditions set forth by the Consolidated Appropriations Act is, therefore, crystal clear. It is for this reason that, two weeks ago, 25 Members of Congress wrote a letter warning US President Biden not to restart funding for the Palestinians. “Accountability and respect for US law is, of course, a linchpin of any successful American foreign policy,” they stated, noting that the previous administration had concluded that the PA did initiate an investigation in The Hague.

Palestinian Elections

Finally, the Palestinian parliamentary elections may throw a wrench into the Biden Administration’s policy vis a vis Ramallah. In January, Abbas issued a decree ordering the first Palestinian elections in over 15 years. The previous parliamentary elections ended in a surprise victory for terror group Hamas. Fast forward to the present, and a new vote is finally set to take place on May 22. According to a March 2021 poll by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research (PCPSR), if elections were held today — with all factions participating — 43 percent would vote for Fatah. Hamas would garner 30 percent of the votes, with 18 percent of eligible voters being undecided.

Should the vote result in Hamas joining a Palestinian Authority government, this could greatly complicate the White House’s plan to re-engage with the Palestinians. The Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act of 2006, a bill originally co-sponsored by Biden when he was a US Senator from Delaware, prohibits US assistance to the PA unless the administration certifies that “no ministry, agency, or instrumentality of the Palestinian Authority is effectively controlled by Hamas.” Funding can only resume if this Palestinian government fulfills several conditions, including publicly acknowledging Israel’s right to exist  – wishful thinking, given Hamas’ stated goal to annihilate the Jewish state.

Further Reading: Palestinian Elections: Groundhog Day or New Path Forward?

All in all, these are important questions that need to be answered before hundreds of millions of dollars will be transferred from US taxpayers. An informed discussion about development aid for the Palestinian people requires a fully informed public, and this is currently not the case. USAID’s assertion that they will provide additional information “as funds are awarded” is not sufficient – once money falls into the wrong hands, it is too late.

In a healthy democracy, the media plays a crucial role in holding politicians accountable. In this case, however, journalists failed to ask important questions regarding the legal controversy surrounding the resumption of development aid. HonestReporting reviewed 79 articles produced on this topic by major media outlets (CNN, The New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, MSN, MSNBC, NBC, and ABC) between April 7, the date of the White House announcement, and April 12. Only one of these stories mentions the Taylor Force Act, while only four specifically explore the question of whether the White House may be violating US law. In addition, only nine of the 79 items make any reference to Palestinian terrorism.

These major news organizations mostly kept readers in the dark about the possibility that US taxpayer money might very well end up in the hands of convicted terrorists.

In response to these troubling developments, HonestReporting is calling on the White House to release all info on the proposed funding, so that the public can see for themselves if the proposal is indeed in accordance with the law.

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