far from a lone occurrence - more than 30 000 families of Palestinian "Martyrs" receive these benefits. Director of the Prisoners' Affairs Authority Issa Karake has strongly denied that payments to prisoners are welfare support for the families. Rather, he emphasized that these payments are a reward "out of

, which was released through its official news service... which is made in the name of the Palestinian Minister responsible for prisoners' affairs, Issa Karake, announced that those payments were salaries and not social assistance. It went further by stating that any talk of social assistance was incorrect

ng for the most senior of Arab prisoners, Martyr =Shahid) Samir Kuntar, who Israel assassinated... Director of PLO Commission of Prisoners' Affairs Issa Karake stated: 'Martyr Samir Kuntar is a Palestinian symbol...We gath=r today in honor of Martyr Kuntar, in order to accompany him to his weddin= (i.e., Ma