RAMALLAH, West Bank — Iman Bani Jameh, the wife of former prisoner Jihad Bani Jameh, from the village of Aqraba near the northern West Bank city of Nablus, was shocked to find out that the Palestinian government had cut off her husband’s salary starting June 1.

At the beginning of every month, the government pays the salaries of its employees and those of prisoners. Bani Jameh told Al-Monitor that this month she was unable to withdraw money because the government did not transfer her husband’s salary to his bank account.

Jihad spent 21 years in Israeli jails and was released in a prisoner exchange deal with Hamas in 2011 before the Israeli army arrested him again in a massive arrest campaign after the kidnapping of three settlers in Hebron in 2014. Jihad was then released six months later because of his deteriorating health condition due to Parkinson's disease.

Cutting off Jihad’s salary, which amounts to 7,000 Israeli shekels ($1,970) per month, has made things harder for his wife who uses the money to pay for his treatment and support their two children as well as her husband’s family. “My husband cannot move, let alone work. His monthly treatment costs 2,000 shekels [$565]. Our two children need a daily allowance and we only had my husband’s salary to support us before it was cut off without prior notice,” Bani Jameh said, noting that Jihad’s condition would deteriorate if he is unable to continue his treatment.