Pay for Slay: The Bounty System Targeting Jews in Israel
Lital Shemesh
Jul 2026 · Sold by Simon and Schuster
Ebook
92
Pages
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About this ebook
From Lital Shemesh, winner of the Moldovan Award for Military Literature, comes a book that is as hard to put down as it is to pick up . . .
How much is a dead Jew worth?
In the Palestinian Authority, there is an official price list.
A stabbing, a shooting, a bombing—each carries a different payout. The more severe the attack, the higher the reward. If the attacker is killed, his family continues to receive payment; if imprisoned, he earns a monthly salary—often higher than the average civilian’s. This is not a fringe phenomenon; it is a policy. Funded in part by international aid and sustained indirectly through mechanisms that intersect with the State of Israel, this system operates in the open. It is codified in law, reinforced in schools, celebrated on television, and echoed by political leaders.
But the story does not end there.
Inside Israeli courtrooms, victim’s families have attempted to fight back and stop the flow of money that rewards the murder of their loved ones. What they encounter is not only a legal battle, but a system that, at times, seems unwilling—or unable—to confront the full implications of what it enables. In Pay for Slay, Israeli journalist and news anchor Lital Shemesh traces this money's path: from the PA’s budget, through layers of bureaucracy and politics, to the very real consequences on the ground.
This is not just a story about terror; it is about incentives.
About what happens when violence is not merely praised, but institutionalized.
And about the uncomfortable question of who, knowingly or not, helps keep it alive.
How much is a dead Jew worth?
In the Palestinian Authority, there is an official price list.
A stabbing, a shooting, a bombing—each carries a different payout. The more severe the attack, the higher the reward. If the attacker is killed, his family continues to receive payment; if imprisoned, he earns a monthly salary—often higher than the average civilian’s. This is not a fringe phenomenon; it is a policy. Funded in part by international aid and sustained indirectly through mechanisms that intersect with the State of Israel, this system operates in the open. It is codified in law, reinforced in schools, celebrated on television, and echoed by political leaders.
But the story does not end there.
Inside Israeli courtrooms, victim’s families have attempted to fight back and stop the flow of money that rewards the murder of their loved ones. What they encounter is not only a legal battle, but a system that, at times, seems unwilling—or unable—to confront the full implications of what it enables. In Pay for Slay, Israeli journalist and news anchor Lital Shemesh traces this money's path: from the PA’s budget, through layers of bureaucracy and politics, to the very real consequences on the ground.
This is not just a story about terror; it is about incentives.
About what happens when violence is not merely praised, but institutionalized.
And about the uncomfortable question of who, knowingly or not, helps keep it alive.
From Lital Shemesh, winner of the Moldovan Award for Military Literature, comes a book that is as hard to put down as it is to pick up . . .
How much is a dead Jew worth?
In the Palestinian Authority, there is an official price list.
A stabbing, a shooting, a bombing—each carries a different p...
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About the author
Lital Shemesh is an Israeli journalist, television news anchor, and author known for her reporting on terrorism, national security, and Middle Eastern geopolitics. A former combat soldier in the Israel Defense Forces and an active reservist officer, she brings firsthand experience from the front lines of Israel’s fight against terrorism. She holds a master’s degree in American Jewish Studies from the University of Haifa and is the author of Pay for Slay, an investigation into the Palestinian Authority’s system of financial rewards for terrorists who attack Israelis. Shemesh is the recipient of the Moldovan Prize for Military Literature, serves as a judge for the International Emmy Awards, and develops original television formats. Through her journalism and research, she focuses on exposing the political and financial systems that incentivize terrorism and shape the conflict in the Middle East.
Lital Shemesh is an Israeli journalist, television news anchor, and author known for her reporting on terrorism, national security, and Middle Eastern geopolitics. A former combat soldier in the Israel Defense Forces and an active reservist officer, she brings firsthand experience from the front ...
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