In her latest column for Justia.com, Professor Lesley Wexler considers the recent protests in Gaza and the decision of Hamas to provide funds to those wounded and to the families of those killed by Israeli military forces and whether such payments ought to be condemned as “pay for slay” disbursements.
After the first set of deadly protests, Hamas announced that it would provide $3,000 to each decedent’s family as well as a $200 or $500 payment to all those wounded. Wexler questions the purpose of such payments, and whether they can be distinguished from the so-called martyr or “pay for slay” payments made by the Palestinian Authority. She writes:
"Can the Hamas-funded payments be distinguished? Opponents say no. They suggest that such payments are a clear inducement to martyr oneself in the engagement in unlawful violence. In poverty-stricken Gaza, $3,000 is a significant sum that might persuade individuals who would otherwise eschew risky activities such as rushing the fence, rolling burning tires, or throwing stones at Israeli soldiers. Israel has condemned such payments as “inciting violence by putting a ‘price tag’ on casualties.” Even if one views joining insurgencies and/or engaging in terroristic violence against the state as the equivalent of joining and participating in a state military’s activities, an equivalence emphatically denied in international law, paying individuals a salary to join forces is practically and morally different from offering a bonus to encourage participants to willingly become part of a body count."
Read the full post at verdict.justia.com.