Praise And Support For Imprisoned Terrorists By Palestinian Authority President ‚Abbas, Palestinian Authority Officials | MEMRI

Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud ‚Abbas has, in several statements in recent weeks, expressed praise and support for the Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons who are conducting a hunger strike; some of these prisoners carried out the worst terror attacks Israel has ever known. ‚Abbas has called these prisoners „our symbols and heroes,“ declaring, several times, that their cause is the PA’s top priority. He also hosted a delegation of families of martyrs and prisoners in his Ramallah headquarters. PA Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah has referred to the leader of the hunger strike, Marwan Al-Barghouti, who is serving five life sentences and four years for his part in the planning of attacks killing dozens of Israelis, as „the fighter,“ and Fatah officials have visited mothers of martyrs and prisoners. Also, in its May 12, 2017 front-page headline, the PA daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida called the prisoners „heroes of freedom and honor.“