A revolutionary peace proposal has emerged from Palestinian clan leaders in Hebron, with five influential sheikhs signing a historic letter that abandons the Palestinian Authority and embraces full recognition of Israel as a Jewish state.
The groundbreaking proposal centers on Sheikh Wadee' al-Jaabari, known as Abu Sanad, who leads Hebron's most powerful clan from the West Bank city located 19 miles (31 kilometers) south of Jerusalem. According to The Wall Street Journal, the sheikh declared from his ceremonial tent that "We want cooperation with Israel" and "We want coexistence" – words that carry extraordinary weight given his family's traditional influence in Palestinian society.
The signed letter, addressed to Israeli Economy Minister Nir Barkat, represents a dramatic departure from decades of Palestinian rejection of Israel's legitimacy. The Wall Street Journal noted that Barkat, a former Jerusalem mayor, has welcomed al-Jaabari and other sheikhs to his home and conducted more than a dozen meetings with them since February, demonstrating the serious nature of these diplomatic efforts.
The sheikhs' written proposal states that "The Emirate of Hebron shall recognize the State of Israel as the nation state of the Jewish people, and the State of Israel shall recognize the Emirate of Hebron as the Representative of the Arab residents in the Hebron District." This recognition goes substantially beyond any previous Palestinian Authority position and completely abandons the rejectionist stance that has characterized Palestinian leadership for generations.
The comprehensive peace plan includes immediate practical benefits, with the sheikhs requesting that Israel admit 1,000 Hebron workers initially, followed by 5,000 more. Sheikh Jaabari and another major sheikh confirmed that Barkat indicated this number could eventually reach 50,000 workers or more from Hebron. Employment in Israel provides crucial income for Palestinian communities, particularly after most work permits were suspended following the October 7 attacks.
The letter explicitly pledges "zero tolerance" for terrorism by workers, creating a stark contrast with "the current situation in which the Palestinian Authority pays tributes to the terrorists," according to The Wall Street Journal. This anti-terrorism commitment represents a fundamental shift from the Palestinian Authority's controversial payments to families of individuals who commit attacks against Israelis.
Barkat emphasized that traditional peace processes have failed, necessitating "new thinking" to address the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The Wall Street Journal reported that he has been working with full knowledge of the Israeli government to explore these possibilities with the sheikhs. A senior Israeli source confirmed that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been supportive but cautious, monitoring how the initiative develops.
The 48-year-old Sheikh Jaabari presents a stark assessment of Palestinian statehood prospects, telling The Wall Street Journal: "There will be no Palestinian state – not even in 1,000 years. After Oct. 7, Israel will not give it." A second major Hebron sheikh who signed the letter and declares loyalty to Sheikh Jaabari agrees, stating: "To think only about making a Palestinian state will bring us all to disaster."
The Wall Street Journal reviewed documents showing that the plan includes establishing a joint economic zone covering more than 1,000 acres near the security fence between Hebron and Israel. The sheikhs anticipate this development will employ tens of thousands of workers, creating substantial economic opportunities for the region.
A Hebrew document obtained by The Wall Street Journal lists Hebron-area sheikhs participating in the emirate initiative. The first circle includes eight major sheikhs leading an estimated 204,000 local residents, while the second circle contains 13 additional sheikhs representing another 350,000 people. This represents a majority of the more than 700,000 residents in the area, with both circles having sworn allegiance to Sheikh Jaabari on this matter.
Sheikh Jaabari announced his intention to "cut off the PA" because "It doesn't represent the Palestinians." He explained that clans governed their localities for centuries before "the Israeli state decided for us. It brought the PLO and told the Palestinians: Take this." The 1993 Oslo Accord installed Yasser Arafat's PLO in the West Bank after the organization had been exiled to Tunisia following expulsion from Jordan and Lebanon.
The sheikh employed an Arabic proverb to criticize the Palestinian Authority's legitimacy: "Only the village's calves plow its land. This means that a person who lives for decades outside – what does he know about where the springs of water in Hebron are located? The only thing you – the PLO – know about Hebron is collecting taxes."
Four other Hebron sheikhs interviewed separately by The Wall Street Journal expressed even stronger condemnation of Palestinian Authority governance. "The PLO called itself a liberation movement. But once they got control, they act only to steal the money of the people," one major sheikh stated. "They don't have the right to represent us – not them and not Hamas, only we ourselves."
Another sheikh emphasized their desperate circumstances: "We want the world to hear our pain. The PA steals everything. They even steal our water. We don't have water to drink." The sheikhs credit Barkat with arranging for the mayor of Israeli settlement Kiryat Arba to construct a water pipe connecting to central Hebron, demonstrating the practical cooperation already occurring.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the sheikhs generally maintain good relations with Israeli settlers and noted that many Palestinians previously earned substantial incomes in the settlements. The plan breaks from the Oslo Accords' territorial division scheme, potentially allowing both the Hebron sheikhs and settlers to gain territory from Area C's open land.
Settler leader Yossi Dagan, who heads the Samaria regional council, confirmed his support for the plan and his collaboration in its development. "His father was a courageous leader who put his people first, and the son is the same," Dagan said about Sheikh Jaabari, noting their 13-year relationship. The sheikhs have also met with Israel Ganz, who leads the settlement council, and with whom Barkat has worked on potential territorial maps.
The emirates solution concept originated with Mordechai Kedar, an Arab culture scholar at Bar-Ilan University who brought Sheikh Jaabari to Barkat five years ago. Kedar has promoted the idea of Palestinian emirates for 20 years, envisioning the West Bank's seven culturally distinct cities governed individually by their leading clans. He first met Sheikh Jaabari's father, Sheikh Abu Khader, 11 years ago.
Kedar's analysis draws on regional patterns, noting that failing Arab states like Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Sudan, Yemen, and Libya represent "conglomerates of ethnic, religious and sectarian groups, with modern states imposed flimsily on top." Conversely, successful Arab states – Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE's seven emirates – "are each controlled by one family."
The scholar explained that "Al-Sabah owns Kuwait. Al-Thani owns Qatar. Al-Saud owns Saudi Arabia. Dubai has very little oil, but it's run by one family, al-Maktoum, so it can thrive." This family-based governance model contrasts sharply with the Palestinian Authority's attempt to create a national identity that supersedes traditional clan loyalties.
Kedar argued that the Palestinian Authority's nationalist project "failed, and the proof is Hamas," which prioritizes radical Islamic ideology over Palestinian nationalism. Meanwhile, the clan system has endured: "Somebody from Hebron – not only will he not move to another West Bank town because he will be viewed as a foreigner, but even in Hebron he will not move to another neighborhood that belongs to another clan."
Hebron's clans possess particular strength compared to other Palestinian cities. "Hebron is much more traditional, much more conservative, especially compared to Ramallah," Kedar observed. "Hebron will be the test case for this idea of the emirates." The initiative's architects expect Hebron to establish a precedent for change in other West Bank cities, potentially beginning with Bethlehem.
The Wall Street Journal noted that traditional clan legitimacy differs fundamentally from organizations like the PLO and Hamas. "Organizations like the PLO and Hamas try to construct their legitimacy on Jew-hatred and hatred of Israel. But the clans are legitimate by definition," Kedar explained. "They don't need an external enemy to frighten everybody to come under the aegis of an illegitimate ruler."
Sheikh Jaabari emphasized the Palestinian Authority's inability to provide security, stating that it "can't protect us, it can't even protect itself." His fellow sheikhs warned that the PA could permit an October 7-style attack on Israel, after which they expect the West Bank to resemble Gaza's current devastation. However, one prominent Hebron sheikh expressed optimism: "If we will get the blessing of honorable President Trump and the United States for this project, Hebron could be like the Gulf, like Dubai."
This vision aligns with former President Trump's May 13 speech in Saudi Arabia, where he presented Middle Eastern nations with a choice between becoming like Iran or like the Gulf states. The Wall Street Journal reported that the sheikhs have clearly made their decision in favor of the Gulf model.
The initiative's progress has faced timing challenges, with the first five sheikhs initially prepared to proceed at the end of Ramadan after signing the letter on March 24. Barkat requested delays while Israel focused on Gaza operations and then Iran, but he reminds Israeli officials that the sheikhs have risked their lives and operate on their own timeline.
Many additional sheikhs have joined since March, and the leadership expresses confidence in having numerical and military advantages over the Palestinian Authority. "The people are with us," one sheikh declared. "Nobody respects the PA, nobody wants them." The only delay factor is Israel's protective relationship with the Palestinian Authority.
The plan faces significant obstacles within Israel's security establishment. The Wall Street Journal reported that if the sheikhs' armed men take action, the question remains whether the Israel Defense Forces and Shin Bet security agency would oppose them. Barkat characterized this as a choice between "habit over reason," noting that "Since Oslo, 30 years ago, the Israeli security services have been instructed to work with the PA. It's all they know."
While the Shin Bet declined to comment to The Wall Street Journal, political and security sources indicated that the agency considers the Palestinian Authority crucial for combating West Bank terrorism and has internally opposed the sheikhs' plan. Concerns include potential violence or chaos in other West Bank cities where sheikhs lack preparation, and the IDF has also raised concerns.
Retired Major General Gadi Shamni, who commanded IDF Central Command from 2007-09, expressed skepticism about clan-based governance. "How do you deal with dozens of different families, each of them armed, each under its own control?" he asked. "The IDF would be caught in the crossfire – it would be a mess, a disaster." Shamni rejected the notion that "the national aspirations of Palestinians will disappear and you can deal with each tribe separately."
However, retired Brigadier General Amir Avivi, founder of the Israel Defense and Security Forum, offered a contrasting perspective. He characterized the Palestinian Authority as "the central incubator of terrorism, via school indoctrination and pay-to-slay salaries" and suggested the Shin Bet might reconsider when David Zini, Netanyahu's right-wing nominee, assumes agency leadership.
Avivi has met Sheikh Jaabari multiple times and considers him serious, particularly given his success in rallying numerous other sheikhs. "If Israel's position is that the PA can't be allowed to rule in Gaza because they're terrorists and they're corrupt, why are they OK to rule in the West Bank?" he questioned.
The sheikhs claim they can remove the Palestinian Authority from Hebron within a week or even a single day, depending on their approach's aggressiveness. "Just don't get involved," one leading Hebron sheikh advised Israel. "Be out of the picture." They believe Trump's support could secure Netanyahu's approval.
The clan leaders assert their capability and motivation to combat terrorism effectively. "We know who makes problems and who doesn't because we live in our land," one explained. Ideology and extremism threaten the tribal loyalty and economic pragmatism that undergird the sheikhs' authority.
The Wall Street Journal noted that critics might argue the sheikhs simply want to extract rents currently claimed by the Palestinian Authority. However, the competition's nature reveals the Palestinian Authority's weakness. An Israeli associate showed a video of Palestinian Authority Hebron governor Khaled Doudin complaining in a January 4 speech that the sheikhs' men fire at PA forces but not at Israel.
Palestinian Authority security forces already face restrictions in the sheikhs' neighborhoods and would risk their lives appearing there without prior Israeli coordination. A 2007 incident demonstrated the clans' power when Palestinian police killed a teenage Jaabari clan member. When the Palestinian Authority refused Sheikh Jaabari's father's demand to surrender the shooter, the sheikh's men seized the police station, burned 14 vehicles, and held 34 officers hostage.
The confrontation ended only when President Mahmoud Abbas capitulated, declaring the deceased teenager a martyr and providing lifetime compensation to his family. Since then, the Palestinian Authority has maintained diminished influence in the area.
When asked about concerns that his coexistence vision might be considered a betrayal of Palestinian aspirations, Sheikh Jaabari responded dismissively: "The betrayal was done in Oslo. You forgot, but I remember – 33 years of it," referring to false promises, violence, theft, and poverty despite billions in Western aid. "I believe in my path," the sheikh concluded. "There will be obstacles, but if we confront a rock, we will have iron to break it."
