Hamas has condemned the Palestinian Authority’s dismissal of Qadura Fares, highlighting it as an attempt to silence opposition to the PA’s decision to cut support for families of prisoners and martyrs.
The Palestinian Authority dismissed Qadura Fares, head of the Palestinian Prisoners Affairs Committee, on Tuesday over his criticism of the PA’s decision to cut social support payments to the families of detainees and those killed by Israel, according to Palestinian media reports.
PA President Mahmoud Abbas issued a presidential decree referring Fares to effective retirement and appointed Raed Arafat Abu Al-Hummus as his successor.
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🛑 Hamas condemned the Palestinian Authority’s decision to dismiss Qadura Fares, head of the Palestinian Prisoners Affairs Committee, over his criticism of the PA’s move to cut social support payments for detainees' families and those killed by Israel.📢 “Attempts to silence… pic.twitter.com/KShvgcBRw0
— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) February 19, 2025
Fares had publicly criticized the PA’s decision to reduce payments to the families of Palestinian prisoners and those killed, arguing that a decision of such significance should have been discussed at all levels of political leadership and required the consensus of the Palestinian National Council (PNC).
Commenting on Abbas’s move to halt allocations for the families of prisoners, the wounded, and the deceased, he previously stated: “We demand that the families confront the occupation and the settlers. When someone is injured or arrested, do we tell him we don’t know him? This is not permissible.”
Additionally, according to Palestinian media, Fares was not officially informed of his dismissal and instead learned about it “through the media.”
Hamas’s Condemnation
The Palestinian Resistance movement Hamas condemned the PA’s decision in a statement on Tuesday.
“Attempts to silence national voices and punish everyone who stands with prisoners, martyrs and their rights reflects the Palestinian Authority’s approach of repression and exclusion and is a dangerous deviation from national constants, and submission to Zionist and American dictates that target the prisoners’ struggle and their just cause,” the statement said.
Hamas affirmed its solidarity with Qadura Fares and “all the free voices that reject the infringement of the rights of prisoners and their families.”
(PC, MEMO)
