In Wake of Khaled Mashaal’s Endorsement of Israeli Teens Kidnapping: Simon Wiesenthal Center Urges President Obama to Suspend Funding PA Until Hamas is Dropped from Unity Government

June 24, 2014

US Taxpayers shouldn’t pay Terrorists’ salaries

Senior officials of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, a leading Jewish Human rights NGO are calling on President Obama to suspend funding the PA, until President Abbas removes Hamas from the Palestinian Unity Government.

“Hamas’ political chief, Khaled Mashaal (pictured) has nothing but praise of the kidnappers of three Israeli teens ten days ago, proving yet again, that Hamas remains true to its anti-Semitic, genocidal founding charter that calls for the destruction of the Jewish State. His statements are a signal that more kidnappings will be attempted in the future”, charged Rabbis Marvin Hier and Abraham Cooper, Dean and Founder and Associate Dean of the Wiesenthal Center.

“In defending the kidnappings, Mashaal declared, ‘“Blessed be the hands that captured them. This is a Palestinian duty, the responsibility of the Palestinian people. Our prisoners must be freed; not Hamas’s prisoners — the prisoners of the Palestinian people.”'

"This is a time for clarity: The United States and the European Union should acknowledge that Hamas’ inclusion in any unified Palestinian Authority creates insurmountable obstacles to ever reaching a peaceful resolution of the Palestinian-Israel conflict,” Center officials said.

“As the agony of the three families of the missing teens continues, the United States take the lead in making clear that it has run out patience with those who claimed that having Hamas inside the government would serve to moderate their words or actions. Nonsense. President Obama should immediately suspend funding of the PA until the members of Hamas are removed from the government’s payroll. US taxpayers shouldn’t be paying terrorists’ salaries and that is exactly what the members of Hamas are,” Hier and Cooper concluded.

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The Simon Wiesenthal Center is one of the largest international Jewish human rights organizations with over 400,000 member families in the United States. It is an NGO at international agencies including the United Nations, UNESCO, the OSCE, the OAS, the Council of Europe and the Latin American Parliament (Parlatino).