The Palestinian Authority (PA), which exercises limited self-government in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, launched operation “Protect the Homeland” in early December with a focus on the sprawling refugee camp in the heart of Jenin, a city long associated with militant resistance.
At least 14 Palestinians have been killed in PA operations, according to the UN, including three children, a female journalist, and six members of the security forces. The PA admits killing only one civilian, but families of other victims, including journalist Shatha al-Sabbagh, say the security forces are responsible.
The Palestinian security operations follow a years-long campaign of Israeli raids targeting militant groups in Jenin, which have escalated during the war in Gaza along with operations across the West Bank. Israeli assaults in Jenin have killed dozens of militants and civilians, with bulldozers tearing up roads and water pipelines.
“The camp is under siege,” he told The i Paper. “People get killed just walking in the street. Palestinian soldiers…are more crazy and stupid than the Israelis. They set fire to houses. Their snipers shoot all the time. Each time we try to fix the electricity, they shoot (power sources) on purpose.”
Mourners pray by the body of Shatha al-Sabbagh, a Palestinian journalist shot dead in Jenin on 29 December (Photo: Jaafer Ashtiyeh/AFP/Getty)“Some of our neighbours have been subjected to gunfire. Houses have been burnt, and the situation keeps getting worse because there isn’t a safe place to hide with your family,” he said. “On top of that, there’s the complete blockade, which causes a lot of problems.”
The PA has been dogged by domestic criticism over its relationship with Israel.
Israel has remained in control of the remainder that was designated Area C, where Israeli settlements – illegal under international law – have rapidly proliferated.
This collaboration is often cited in polls showing the PA’s unpopularity, with the most recent survey by the Palestinian Centre for Policy and Survey Research showing just 18 per cent public support for Fatah – the party that controls the PA – in the West Bank, with rivals Hamas on 37 per cent.
Bullet marks on a building in Jenin camp after clashes between PA and militant forces(Photo: Raneen Sawafta/Reuters)
The PA has responded to criticism by claiming to be acting to prevent militant groups from launching attacks on Israeli targets that could trigger even more destructive Israeli operations in the West Bank.
Mahmoud Hawashin, secretary general of Fatah in Jenin told The i Paper that the operations “seek to create a state of calm and prevent paramilitary actions against the Israeli army forces to avoid … destruction similar to what is happening in Gaza.”
The US has offered support for a Palestinian-led government in the devastated enclave, with the PA the obvious candidate. But Israeli leaders including Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, oppose such a move, accusing the PA of being too close to militant groups.
He said PA forces had “mistakenly” killed one civilian during operations in Jenin, and the other deaths would be investigated.
PA Spokesperson Anwar Rajab described results to date as “satisfactory,” claiming last week that security forces had made 247 arrests during operations to date, as well as confiscating illicit weapons and finance.
The dominant militant force in the camp and city is al-Qatiba – the Jenin Brigades – an umbrella group that includes elements of Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade.
A Jenin militant giving a media interview (Photo: Raneen Sawafta/Reuters)The Brigades issued a statement and a warning last week denouncing PA operations.
The network claims popular legitimacy in the camp, a historic site of resistance operations from battles with British mandate forces before the establishment of Israel in 1948, to the intifadas – uprisings – against Israeli occupation in the 80s and early 2000s, and a resurgence of militant groups in recent years following the failures of the peace process.
“The PA don’t want any form of resistance, they just want a peaceful solution. And this peaceful solution, through negotiations, is something the people in the camp find unviable because they have tried it before.”
But the damage inflicted upon the brigades by Israeli raids encouraged the PA to believe the operations could succeed, they said.
A rare water delivery in Jenin camp (Photo: Raneen Sawafta/Reuters)
The PA was further encouraged by the hope that the damage inflicted upon Jenin in Israeli raids, and the threat of further escalation, could weaken public support for the militants, they added, as well as the economic hardship created by many Jenin residents losing their jobs inside Israel after Hamas attacks of 7 October 2023.
Daoud Kuttab, a veteran Palestinian political journalist and author of the new book State of Palestine NOW, said the PA is seeking to strike a balance between cracking down on the militants and restoring control, without losing further public legitimacy by killing many Palestinians.
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Read MoreThe governing body is also motivated by the possibility of a governing role in postwar Gaza, the journalist believes.
But the PA must also address a legitimacy deficit with its own public as a result of the failures of the peace process, the lack of elections, and domestic repression, Kuttab added. He suggests the best they can offer at this point is some respite from escalating violence, and steadfastness in the face of Israeli threats to annex the West Bank, rather than reviving hopes of independence.
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