A jury in the Federal District Court on Monday ordered the Palestinian Authority (PA) and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) to pay $218 million to victims of terror after finding that the two groups provided material support to the terrorists who carried out the attacks. Ten American families who were victims of six attacks carried out by the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades and Hamas sued for more than $350 million. The US Anti-Terrorism Act could triple the award. The defense argued that the terrorists who carried out the attacks acted on their own and not under instructions from the PA or PLO. But the jury agreed with the plaintiffs’ argument that the system of stipends and rewards for terrorists and their families was tacit approval and encouragement for their actions.