JERUSALEM – The Palestinian Authority Minister of Education visited a school this week to “honor the souls” of three terrorists who attended the school, including one who murdered an Israeli policewoman earlier this year.
Education Minister Sabri Saidam visited the Izzat Abu Al-Rubb High School near Jenin in the West Bank “in honor of the souls of three of its students who died this year as martyrs,” the Palestinian Authority daily, Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, reported in an article translated by Palestinian Media Watch (PMW.)
One of the honored “martyrs” was Ahmad Najah Abu Al-Rubb who, together with two accomplices armed with machine guns, knives, and pipe bombs, attacked Israeli police officers at Jerusalem’s Damascus gate in February. One of the officers, 19-year-old Hadar Cohen, died of her wounds. The arsenal that the terrorists were carrying led police to suspect they were on their way to carry out a mass attack.
As part of his visit, Saidam toured the school’s exam halls ahead of the high school matriculations. He promised that after the results of the exams are announced, “a tribute to the martyrs’ families will be held at this school as a sign of loyalty to them and to their sacrifice.”
The matriculating class, totaling 175 students, named themselves “Class of Martyrs Kmeil and Abu Al-Rubb” after two of the terrorists, the report said.
The high school is named after Izzat Abu Al-Rubb, a Fatah military leader who perpetrated a number of terror attacks against Israel. Two out of three of the honored terrorists were also called Abu Al-Rubb.
Glorification of terror is an integral part of the Palestinian Authority’s education curriculum.
Earlier in the month, IMPACT-SE released a study which concluded that Palestinian textbooks promoted a “demonization of Israel and Jews, including the characterization of Israel as an evil entity that should be annihilated.”