IDF Nablus raid is another nail in the coffin of the Palestinian Authority - analysis
IDF's military raid is seen by many Palestinians as yet another sign of the PA leadership’s deceptive policies and double talk.
By KHALED ABU TOAMEHUpdated: FEBRUARY 22, 2023 20:50 Palestinians clash with Israeli forces during a raid in Nablus in the West bank, February 22, 2023(photo credit: REUTERS/RANEEN SAWAFTA)
The timing of Wednesday’s IDF operation in Nablus, in which 10 Palestinians were killed and dozens injured, could not have been any worse for the Palestinian Authority, whose leaders were quick to condemn Israel and call for international protection to the Palestinians.
The military raid is seen by many Palestinians as yet another sign of the PA leadership’s deceptive policies and double talk.
Worse, the raid further undermines the PA’s credibility, making it appear as being part of an Israeli-American “conspiracy” targeting the Palestinian people.
Palestinian wary over PA-Israel security coordination
Many Palestinians are convinced that the operation in Nablus came in the context of ongoing security coordination between Palestinian security forces and Israel.
A video of a Palestinian police vehicle fleeing the area as IDF soldiers entered Nablus is being cited by some Palestinians as proof that the PA is in cahoots with Israel.
Nablus todayWe will not turn our necks to the Gallows of oppression. We will fight until the occupation ends, from the apartheid soldier to the fanatic settler. Whatever the cost may be! pic.twitter.com/1orS1T4rvn
Palestinians clash with Israeli forces during a raid in Nablus in the West Bank, February 22, 2023. (credit: REUTERS/RANEEN SAWAFTA)
Raid follows Palestinian-Israeli compromise over diplomatic moves
The raid also came amid widespread criticism of the PA’s decision earlier this week to drop a draft resolution at the United Nations Security Council to condemn Israel over its decision to legalize settler outposts and build new homes in the settlements.
The Palestinians, together with the United Arab Emirates, had planned to obtain a resolution strongly condemning Israel over its settlement activities and “unilateral measures.”
According to a report in the US media outlet Axios, the decision to withdraw the resolution was taken in the context of an “understanding” reached between Israel and the Palestinians.
As part of the alleged understandings, the US committed to inviting PA President Mahmoud Abbas for a meeting with President Joe Biden at the White House.
The Palestinians, in addition, committed to resume security coordination with Israel and start implementing a security plan put forward by US Security Coordinator Lt.-Gen. Michael Fenzel to restore PA control in Jenin and Nablus.
The decision to abandon the Security Council bid has angered many Palestinians, who accused the Ramallah-based leaders of submitting to US and Israeli pressure.
The decision also drew sharp criticism from seven radical factions, whose representatives warned that the Palestinian leadership’s policies would have “destructive consequences” for the Palestinian people.
In a statement issued hours before the Israeli security operation in Nablus, the factions, including Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, accused the PA leadership of “continuing to sell illusions to the people by aligning itself with the American administration.”
Some Palestinians claimed on Wednesday that the PA had never ended security coordination with Israel, as it claimed it did in late January.
They pointed out that the operation in Nablus came in the aftermath of reports that the US administration was exerting pressure on the PA to crack down on the armed groups in the northern West Bank.
Another recent Axios report revealed that senior Palestinian and Israeli officials have been holding secret talks for almost two months in an effort to de-escalate tensions in the West Bank.
According to the report, PLO Executive Committee Secretary-General Hussein al-Sheikh and National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi have been leading the clandestine talks.
This report is also being cited by many Palestinians as proof that the PA leadership lied about halting security coordination with Israel.
The PA has not offered any explanation to its last-minute decision to drop its bid at the Security Council. Additionally, it has neither confirmed nor denied the reports about back-channel talks and “understandings” with Israel and those concerning a US-backed security plan to get rid of the armed groups in Nablus and Jenin.
The silence of the Palestinian leadership has reinforced the belief among many Palestinians that Abbas and his top aides are being deceitful in dealing with their people.
In the eyes of a growing number of Palestinians, the PA leadership is working in collusion with Israel and the US against the interests of its own people.
The PA leaders, meanwhile, are doing their utmost at damage control by accusing Israel of committing “crimes” and “massacres” against Palestinians. “Another massacre committed by the occupation in its aggression against Nablus this morning,” Sheikh commented on Twitter.
In response, several Palestinians again accused him of collaboration with Israel and demanded that the PA security forces release Mosab Shtayyeh, a senior Hamas operative and one of the founders of the Lions’ Den, who was arrested by the Palestinians in September 2022.
The attacks on Sheikh, who is considered No. 2 in the Palestinian leadership, reflect the widespread resentment against Abbas and his inner circle. This is very good news for Hamas and its allies.
