Fatah’s television station Awdah twice broadcast a music video featuring photos of suicide bombers with a song whose lyrics promote death as a martyr for the Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.
According to the NGO Palestinian Media Watch, the video starts with a recording of late Palestinian Authority leader Yasser Arafat saying, “They [the Israelis] want me captive, exiled or dead – but I tell them: [I will be] a Martyr! Martyr! Martyr!”
The video that follows includes images of two female suicide bombers who killed three Israelis and wounded more than 100 during the second intifada of 2000-2005:
Al-Aqsa has called, and its call is precious
For its sake, life is insignificant, even if it’s precious…
God, grant us Martyrdom there
God, promise us, we beg of you…
A million grooms and brides at the celebration
Have written the marriage contract in blood on the veil
At this point the video includes a photo of suicide bomber Wafa Idris, who killed one person and wounded over 100 in a Jerusalem attack.
Filled with desire, they are going to the Paradise of immortals
To a wedding procession with angels that fill Palestine with light
The clip also includes pictures of two Palestinian children who died during the PA terror campaign.
According to PMW, the language and visuals of this clip are similar to the tone of Palestinian TV clips during the second intifada as documented by the NGO.
During that terror campaign, PMW reported, encouraging suicide bombings and describing death by “martyrdom” as a wedding in a “paradise of immortals” and the video’s linking suicide bombers with “grooms and brides” who “have written the marriage contract in blood on the veil” were recurring messages.
One clip, the longest running music video on official Palestinian Authority television, encouraged Palestinian men to seek death as martyrs in violent actions against Israel. The clip showed an actor portraying a martyr being greeted by the beautiful virgins in Paradise. The clip was aired on Palestinian TV from 2000 until 2010.
According to Islamic belief, a “shahid” (martyr) marries 72 virgins when he reaches paradise. Therefore, a shahid’s funeral is considered a “wedding.” Becoming a martyr represents the highest religious achievement that can be attained by a Muslim. Families of martyrs are rewarded by the PA with monthly stipends for life.
Wafa Idris was the first female suicide bomber. She blew herself up on Jaffa Road in central Jerusalem on Jan. 27, 2002. As a volunteer for the Palestinian Red Crescent she was able to bypass Israeli security and enter Jerusalem in a Palestinian ambulance.
Ayyat Al-Akhras was the youngest female Palestinian suicide bomber (aged 17). A member of Fatah, Al-Akhras blew herself up near a Jerusalem supermarket on March 29, 2002, killing two people and wounding 28.
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