Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas issued a decree removing 13 of his 16 regional governors from their posts, the PA's Wafa news agency reported on Thursday.

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In Judea and Samaria, Abbas ordered the forced retirement of the heads of the PA's governorates of Jenin, Nablus, Qalqilya, Tulkarm, Bethlehem, Hebron, Tubas and Jericho (the latter includes a large section of the Jordan Valley).

Video: Hamas holds military summer camp in Gaza/Credit: Reuters

In the Gaza Strip, which has been ruled by the Hamas terrorist organization since 2007, Abbas fired the PA representatives for North Gaza, Gaza City, Khan Younis and Rafah.

Only the governors of Jerusalem, Salfit and Ramallah/al-Bireh remain in their posts. The governor of Deir el-Balah in Gaza, Abdullah Abu Samhadana, died in 2020, and Abbas has yet to appoint a successor.

Wafa cited no reason given for the overhaul. The report claimed Abbas ordered the creation of a committee, consisting of "leading figures," that would advise and present him with candidates to fill the vacant positions.

Abbas's own status within his Fatah faction is shaky due to his age and poor health, and the lack of change in relations between the PA and Israel, creating a very real risk of a loss of further control in other Palestinian-governed cities across Judea and Samaria, counterterrorism expert Professor Boaz Ganor told JNS last month.

Recent polling shows that the 87-year-old Abbas is deeply unpopular among the Palestinian public, who increasingly support opposition armed terrorist groups. In Jenin specifically, at least 45% of residents are believed to be affiliated with Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

On July 12, Abbas paid a rare visit to Jenin, a week after the Israel Defense Forces concluded a major counterterrorism operation in the northern Samaria city. The visit marked Abbas's second official trip to Jenin since being elected PA chairman 18 years ago.

Reprinted with permission from JNS.org.

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The highly professional and critical activity undertaken by the IDF in Jenin was an unavoidable eventuality. Though it should be able to put a stop to the ongoing process of replicating to northern Samaria the modus operandi of the terrorist organizations operating in the Gaza Strip, it will not be sufficient to generate a change in the nature of the overall situation in that area.

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The trend of escalation in the shooting incidents and in the activation of explosive devices against IDF forces operating in that sector, in addition to the recent (failed) launching of rockets at the Jewish communities on the nearby Gilboa mountain range, have clearly underscored the significance of the processes being adopted by the terrorist organizations in that area to gain military strength, leaving the IDF with no other choice than to engage in action in the heart of Jenin. Israel cannot allow the development in Judea and Samaria of a similar process to that which has occurred in the Gaza Strip.

A region with a history of violence

Jenin is a region with a history of intense violence. This is an area that is well and truly a geographical, political, and socio-economic periphery. The central government has always had an extremely loose grip over Jenin. This was the case way back in the 1930's, during the British Mandate era, when the British police forces killed Izz ad-Din al-Qassam near the village of Yabd in this sector. Al-Qassam's name subsequently became a source of inspiration and a symbol of resistance for Hamas terrorist cells.

Video: Reuters

During the Second Intifada, this area came to be renowned as a stronghold of Palestinian resistance. The fierce battle in the Jenin refugee camp is considered to be one of the most painful incidents of Operation Defensive Shield, during which the IDF forces incurred heavy losses. Just like today, then too the strong cooperation among the various groups in the refugee camp was a salient point, together with the use of improvised explosive devices and booby traps, and the cynical exploitation of the loc civilian population and civilian facilities to hide and to store weapons. The ethos of resistance associated with Jenin soon became a symbol for the terrorist organizations, providing inspiration for Palestinian terrorists from all over.

Twenty years after "Defensive Shield", this area has once again been established as a stronghold of terrorism in Samaria and a focal point for exporting terrorism across Judea and Samaria, and into the heart of Israel too. The objective of the IDF operation was to strike a blow at the underlying terrorist networks there, to arrest or kill terrorists and their supporters, to capture weapons, to expose and destroy the workshops used to manufacture arms, and to reverse or at least curb the process of the terrorist organizations that have taken root there, bolstering their military capabilities.

Maximum damage at minimum risk

The key objective of the defense establishment is to cause maximum damage to the terrorist infrastructure at minimum risk to our forces and while avoiding any spillover of the violence into additional fronts, not to mention of course damage limitation with regard to criticism on the diplomatic front. Having said that, the IDF must be aware that: With all due respect to the importance of these considerations, the prime consideration is that of the safety of our forces. An additional challenge facing the defense establishment, as we have seen, is of course to monitor and counter any attempts to carry out revenge attacks elsewhere. The aim to preserve and maintain the daily routine in those areas not in the immediate combat zone, including the entry of Palestinians into Israel for work, clearly increases the risk of lone-wolf attacks inspired by the events in Jenin, as we witnessed in Tel Aviv on Tuesday.

Consequently, the Israel Security Agency, or Shin Bet, will have to be on the alert and closely monitor the situation vis-a-vis Israeli Arabs and Palestinians (especially from northern Samaria), who have settled down in Israel as part of the process of family unification.

The PA will not do the job

Ultimately, however, the big question pertaining to this operation still remains related to its underlying political-diplomatic purpose: What will happen now in Jenin, following the end of this operation? The current definitions of the operation do not herald any strategic change on this issue. Now that the operation has come to an end, control over the area will be handed over to the PA (Palestinian Authority) security forces.

Will the PA adopt a more proactive approach in order to preserve the new situation? The simple two-word answer to this question is "highly unlikely". The fact that the PA security forces even allow the IDF to engage in such activity is considered by much of the local population to be an act of treason. It's safe to assume that Hamas and the PIJ will continue to chide it for this, ramping up the bad feelings against it. In such a state of affairs, it is far from certain that the PA will elect to engage in any activity to remove the remains of terrorist activity there.

It may come as no surprise that we will have to continue to do this ourselves.

If we add to this the inbuilt weaknesses of the PA (some of which have been a contributory factor to the creation of the current situation in Jenin) and the impact of the ongoing inheritance battles, as various rivals look to replace the aging Mahmoud Abbas, it is extremely difficult to be the least bit optimistic as to the chances of the Palestinian security forces preserving the counter-terrorist achievements made by the IDF during this current operation.

The most plausible option is that, even in the aftermath of Operation Home and Garden, we will have to continue to root out any potential terrorist activity ourselves, in what might be termed "lawn mowing" activity. The contribution of the current operation to that will take the form of the somewhat more favorable operational conditions that it should provide for any such future operations to be undertaken by the security forces.

Meir Ben Shabbat is head of the Misgav Institute for National Security & Zionist Strategy, in Jerusalem. He served as Israel's national security advisor and head of the National Security Council between 2017 and 2021, and prior to that for 30 years in the General Security Service (the Shin Be security agency or "Shabak").

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At least 10% of the Palestinians who were arrested in recent years were legally allowed to be in Israel, according to information exclusively obtained by Israel Hayom.

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The information, compiled by the Knesset Research and Information Center in a new report, further shows that this statistic has risen sharply in the span of several years.

The document was composed at the request of Hanoch Milwidsky from Likud, together with right-wing watchdog Im Tirtzu. An analysis of the data shows that between 2018-2022, some 21,000 Palestinians were arrested for terror-related offenses. About 10% of them (2,115) had been issued entry permits that allowed them to cross over the Green Line: In 2018 the number stood at 212, but by 2021 this had already risen to 767, perhaps in light of the additional domestic strife surrounding Operation Guardian of the Walls in Gaza. In 2022 the number of entry permit holders who were arrested dropped slightly to 580.

Some 18% of the permit-holders who were arrested in those years had already entered Israel when they were arrested, the figures show. In 2022, in the wake of several terrorist attacks, the IDF began sealing the gaps in the security barrier but as of June 2023, the Israel Police still does not have an official estimate as to how many Palestinians cross over into Israel. According to the Shin Bet security agency, some 7,000 Palestinians enter Israel daily without the proper documentation.

"A rise of 35% in terrorist-related offenses among Palestinian permit holders is unacceptable, " Milwidsky said in reaction to the report. "We will not allow Israelis' security to be compromised just so Palestinians have a better economic life. I will ask the head of the Foreign Affairs and Defense COmmittee Yuli Edelstein to convene a hearing on the policy for issuing permits."

Im Tirtzu Head of Policy Alon Schwartzer told Israel Hayom that "it is beyond the pale that the right of livelihood of Arabs in Judea and Samaria would trump the right to life and security of Israeli citizens." He added, "The data on the involvement in terrorism among permit holders who use them to visit prisoners suggests that all relevant agencies must act immediately to reduce the availability of such permits. We call on the head of the Foreign Affairs and Defense COmmittee to convene an urgent meeting on the matter and demand answers from the security establishment."

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Figures released by the Israel Tax Authority reveal that in recent years, Israel has failed to properly validate manifests of imports it processes on behalf of the Palestinian Authority, resulting in billions of shekels being paid to Ramallah without justification, including 1.5 billion shekels ($411 million) in 2021 alone. 

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Since the Palestinian Authority does not have its own ports, Israel collects the various import taxes and levies on its behalf when they arrive in Israeli ports. The goods then get transferred via trucks to the Palestinian Authority and the taxes are also transferred by Israel. However, the amount of taxes Israel collects and then hands over is determined by the manifests declared by the Palestinian importer. 

Israel Hayom can report that in most cases, the crates that contain Palestinian imports are emptied in Israeli ports and much of the content does not reach its final destination but is rather sold in Israel itself, but none of the taxes stay in Israel. 

As a result, Israel loses twice: First because it transfers the tax for the entire crate to the Palestinians, and second, because it never collects the import taxes it could have received for the goods that stay in Israel. 

This "Crate Sting" has already been exposed in 2020 in a State Comptroller report. In 2016, the report noted, 35% of the imported goods were never transferred to the Palestinian Authority despite being earmarked as such in the manifest. In 2017, the figure rose to 37%, and in 2018 to 41%. 

Rather than reaching the Palestinian importers they were sold in Israel illegally, having never been officially imported to the state and never taxed. 

According to a report issued by Israel Tax Authority, in 2016, Israel lost 450 million shekels ($123 million) as a result of this sting. The comptroller further noted that law enforcement agencies have not sufficiently cracked down on this. 

The Israel Tax Authority assesses that some 50% of the content that does not get officially transferred to the PA does eventually reach Palestinian cities through unofficial border crossings, meaning Israel's losses might be half of what has been stated. However, the authority did not show documents to support that. 

The Lavi organization, which seeks to promote proper governance, filed a freedom of information request. Israel Hayom can report that as a result of this request, figures have been released and they show that the situation has gotten worse in recent years. In 2019, 66% of the PA-destined goods never made it there, with Israel losing 543 million shekels ($148 million). In 2020, this rose to 70% (695 million shekels or $190 million), and in 2021 it rose to 83% (1.5 billion shekels or $411 million). Even if the Israel Tax Authority assesses that the actual sums are lower because half of the goods do eventually make it there, the loss would still be huge: 750 million shekels in 2021 ($205 million) alone.

Lavi's efforts to get answers from the government go back at least a year when it approached then-Finance Minister Avigdor Lieberman, the attorney general, the Israel Tax Authority, and the head of the Lahav 433 unit in the police. In February 2023, another query was made with the new finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich. 

"The Israel Tax Authority told the organization that it did not punish importers who engaged in that scheme despite the recommendations of the state comptroller. Likewise, a special electronic monitoring system bought by the agency has not been phased into service. A law-enforcement source told Israel Hayom that Israel's ability to enforce is limited because of the Paris economic agreement with the PA from 1994. Under that agreement, Israel must transfer the taxes it collects on its behalf based on the manifest declared by the importer rather than based on the actual delivery of the goods. 

The Kohelet Policy Forum petitioned the High Court of Justice in order to force the state to change its enforcement and tax collection practices. The request also includes a demand that the state take back in taxes the billions of shekels it handed over to the PA in recent years for goods that were never delivered to importers. "The money transfers are illegal and deplete the public coffers," they wrote. 

The Israel Tax Authority said in a statement: "The Israel Tax Authority has been active on this issue of transferring import taxes to the Palestinian Authority as stipulated under the Paris Agreement. We carry out routine oversight over the crossings between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, including as a means of cracking down on criminal activity where goods declared for the Palestinian Authority are in fact for Israeli importers. The authority has been using the means at its disposal under the law, including through the seizure of monetary deposits of importers in cases where the goods don't arrive in the PA-held areas."

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Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians on Wednesday thronged a rally in downtown Gaza to mark the 35th anniversary of the founding of the Hamas militant group, as leaders predicted a year of "open confrontation" with the Israeli government expected to take office in the coming days. Hamas, an armed terrorist group that has ruled the Gaza Strip since 2007, worked hard to mobilize the large turnout at the city's Katiba park, viewing it as a show of strength at a time when it appears to be struggling for popularity.

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Hamas seized control of the impoverished enclave from forces loyal to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, who is based in the West Bank.  During the rally, Hamas leaders predicted an "open confrontation" with Israel in 2023 as the most right-wing government ever is expected to be sworn in later this month.

"We have to give the chance to ignite the resistance in the West Bank," said Yahya Sinwar, Hamas' leader in Gaza.

Sinwar slammed Abbas, calling for an end to the Palestinian Authority's security coordination with Israel, which he said hurt mounting resistance to Israeli raids in the West Bank. The Israeli military maintains quiet coordination with Abbas' forces in a shared struggle against Islamic militants.

Hamas also displayed what it said was the assault rifle of Hadar Goldin, an Israeli soldier who along with Oron Shaul was killed in a 2014 war inside Gaza. Sinwar said Israel has "a limited amount of time" to swap Palestinian prisoners it is holding for the remains of Goldin and Shaul "or we close this file for good." While Hamas leaders directed fiery rhetoric at Israel and Abbas, they overlooked the increasing suffering of the 2.3 million residents of Gaza under its rule.

While the blockade has stifled Gaza's economy, critics note that the group has continuously upgraded its arsenal, including digging attack tunnels into Israel and improving rocket capabilities.

Critics say the group diverts money towards its administration and military wing, while the international community and the PA pay for most of health, education, social and other services for Gaza' population. Hamas' heavy-handed rule allows no room for opposition, and the group has banned protests against it and jailed critics. Many of the group's top leaders also have left Gaza for more comfortable locations in places like Turkey and Qatar.

A poll conducted this month by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research, a respected think tank based in the West Bank, found that Hamas remains more popular than Abbas' Fatah party in the Gaza Strip. It said 43% of respondents would vote for Hamas in a parliamentary election, compared to 34% for Fatah. Still, the poll found that just 6% of Gazans think the situation in the territory is positive, and 69% believe that Hamas-run institutions suffer from corruption. The poll interviewed some 1,200 people and had a margin of error of 3 percentage points.

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Over the past week, hundreds of testimonies and documents from the investigation into the circumstances of the death of Yasser Arafat, led by Tirawi, have been leaked to social media and Palestinian media outlets.

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The Palestinians have dubbed the affair "Palestinian WikiLeaks." Information from the probe over a decade ago continues to leak and every day new testimonies of persons who appeared before the investigative committee have been made public. Senior Palestinian officials testified that Arafat saw Mahmoud Abbas – now the head of the Palestinian Authority – as a collaborator with Israel and the United States and feared a conspiracy was being weaved against him at the time of the siege of the Muqata'a – the Palestinian presidential compound in Ramallah – during the Second Intifada before he died in mysterious circumstances in a French hospital in November 2004.

The leaks and the Arafat file which was never closed are just part of the story. Another element pertains to infighting within the Palestinian leadership and the battle to inherit President Mahmoud Abbas

It isn't clear who is responsible for the leak. While Abbas' camp blames Tirawi, other elements in the PLO claim that interested parties from Abbas' camp, or even elements associated with a third party could be attempting to cause a divide between the Palestinian Authority president and to Tirawi. Ties between the two men were already tense before the leaks.

Tirawi denies these allegations and has implored the Palestinian security services to investigate how the hack occurred and how the documents were stolen. "They have the ability to get to whoever did this. First of all, who leaked it and then to investigate who published it," says Tirawi. "How is it possible that something so important and sensitive has been hacked? It is the security services' responsibility to find out the truth."

In an interview with Israel Hayom, Tirawi claimed that the aim of the leak is to harm his good name and to interfere with the work of the probe into Arafat's death. "For 13 years I have been with investigating the issue of Arafat's death. Suddenly, everybody comes out against me. Until now, we haven't heard a word and now a full-on assault," he says. "It began in 2016. when I was asked in an interview, who will replace Mahmoud Abbas and I said that it will be either the commander of the revolution or someone from the Village League." The latter being a reference to the organization established under the auspices of the Israeli security establishment in the 1980s as an alternative to the PLO.

Sources close to Abbas interpreted these comments as an accusation of collaboration with Israel. Since then, the relations between Abbas and Tirawi have been volatile and attempts have been made to remove the general from any position of influence. A few months ago, he was replaced as chairman of  Al-Istiqlal University in Jericho, which trains members of the Palestinian security apparatuses, a role Tirawi held for years.

Tirawi told Israel Hayom that was recently the subject of threats from various Palestinian elements, made in his words "under the table".

"I received various messages, such as 'Go overseas, otherwise you will be put on trial and jailed and we will act against you in all sorts of ways.' Somebody wants to silence me.

Tirawi refrains from naming any names or pointing to specific elements responsible for the attacks against him. Among certain circles in Ramallah, there is concern that Tirawi is in possession of sensitive information and secrets about senior PLO people obtained when he headed the GIS.

The estrangement between Tirawi and Abbas has increased lately following critical remarks he made against the PLO leadership after it lost elections to the student council at Bir Zeit University and in various elections to professional organizations and unions. "I appeared on Palestinian television and I appealed to the PLO and said, 'Where are you headed? Hamas has conducted a coup in Gaza and now it is carrying out a quiet revolution in the West Bank by gaining control of professional organizations, universities and municipalities." After that I came under fire. People started to verbally assault me and my colleagues and launched a personal attack against me. Then it continued with the leaks, everything just to hurt me."

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Palestinian security forces and various factions agreed to a truce on Wednesday to end violent clashes in a flashpoint West Bank city, local officials said. The violence highlighted deep disenchantment with the internationally backed Palestinian leadership.

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For now, the deal to end the clashes eases tensions in the area, which on Tuesday was gripped by some of the fiercest antagonism directed at the Palestinian Authority in years.

The clashes erupted after an arrest raid by Palestinian security against local terrorists. The two sides exchanged fire as angry residents pelted an armored jeep with objects and chased it away. One man was reported dead. The violence was reminiscent of the way Palestinians typically protest against Israeli troops.

Also Wednesday, the body of a Palestinian man suspected of killing an 84-year-old Israeli woman was found hanged in central Tel Aviv, police said.

The unrest in Nablus reflected the deep unpopularity of the Palestinian leadership, which is widely seen because of its security ties with Israel as entrenching Israel's 55-year presence. A semblance of normal life returned on Wednesday to Nablus, known as the West Bank's business capital. Shoppers walked around the debris from the clashes as firefighters atop cranes smashed broken glass out of storefront windows bordering the city's main Martyrs Square. Palestinian security forces were deployed in armored vehicles in the city center.

A committee of Palestinian factions and other prominent figures said that under the truce, Palestinian security forces would cease to arrest suspects wanted by Israel in the city, unless they broke Palestinian law. Authorities would discuss the release of one of the men arrested in the recent raid. They would also release Palestinians detained in Tuesday's clashes, unless they damaged property or looted.

The Palestinian Authority maintains close security ties with Israel and the two often collaborate against Islamic terrorists in the West Bank. Israel has prodded the Palestinian Authority to do more to contain militancy, especially in the months following a spate of deadly attacks against Israelis in the spring, which killed 19 people.

Israel has instead intensified its own activity in the area, sending troops on nightly arrest incursions into villages, cities and towns, rounding up hundreds of Palestinians and killing some 90 during that time. Israel says the vast majority of those killed were terrorists. Some civilians have been killed in the violence, among them a veteran Al Jazeera journalist and a lawyer who inadvertently drove into a battle zone.

The northern West Bank, including the areas around Nablus and Jenin, a city that has long been a bastion of armed struggle against Israel, have been focal points in the raids. The Palestinian Authority has less of a foothold there and is viewed with deep suspicion because of its security ties to Israel.

That disenchantment, coupled with the soaring tensions driven up by the nightly Israeli raids, boiled over with the clashes on Tuesday.

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Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas accused Israel on Friday of practicing "hideous policies of ethnic cleansing and organized terrorism" against Palestinians in his first public comments since meeting Tuesday with Defense Minister Benny Gantz.

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Abbas spoke on the 57th anniversary of the launch of the first attack on Israel by the ruling Fatah faction.

In his speech, the PA leader did not mention the meeting with Gantz, which was strongly condemned by several Palestinian factions and activists.

"The anniversary of the launch of our revolution comes under extremely critical and difficult circumstances due to the continuation of the heinous Israeli occupation, the escalation of its repressive practices and persecution of our people, the theft of our land and natural resources, the stifling of our economy, the withholding of our tax funds, and racial discrimination," said Mahmoud Abbas, according to The Jerusalem Post.

He praised the Palestinian security prisoners held in Israeli jails for their "sacrifices and patience," stressing that the Palestinian government will not "abandon them or their families."

He also praised the "heroes of the popular resistance."

i24NEWS contributed to this report

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Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas met with United States National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan in Ramallah on Wednesday night.

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According to a statement by Abbas' office, the Palestinian leader spoke to Sullivan about "the latest developments in Palestinian territories and the need to end the Israeli occupation of territories of the Palestinian state, settlements activities and terrorism by settlers."

Abbas also said Israel must halt "evictions of Palestinians in East Jerusalem neighborhoods, stop deducting funds from tax revenues and choking the Palestinian economy."

"The president stressed the need to stop these unilateral Israeli practices that undermine the two-state solution," to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Abbas' office said.

The Palestinian leader also urged closer US-Palestinian ties and told Sullivan that obstacles to closer American-Palestinian ties "must be overcome."

According to the statement, Sullivan reconfirmed Washington's commitment to a two-state solution.

The meeting was also attended by Hussein al-Sheikh, head of the PA' General Authority of Civil Affairs, and Majed Faraj, who overlooks the PA's General Intelligence Service.

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Senior Hamas officials accused the Palestinian Authority on Wednesday of campaigning against it in Judea and Samaria. The terrorist group, which wrestled control of the Gaza Strip from PA President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party in a military coup in 2007, said PA security forces targeted Hamas supporters during released prisoners' celebrations and banned the waving of Hamas flags.

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Deputy Hamas leader Zahar Jabarin accused the PA of curtailing the group's activities in Judea and Samaria and Hamas official Mahmoud Mardawi said Fatah acted under pressure from "forces hostile to the Palestinian people" that dictated its actions.

Criticism against the PA came after several clashes between Hamas members and PA security forces. According to reports, forces targeted members who waved Hamas flags during the reception of released prisoners. The members, in turn, threw stones and Molotov cocktails at the forces. One man was reportedly injured in the clashes.

Following the clashes, Ismail Haniyeh, chief of Hamas' political bureau, called on the PA on Wednesday to stop harming Palestinians in Judea and Samaria and seize political arrests and its security cooperation with Israel.

Haniyeh also criticized the PA for what he defined as "sanctions on the Gaza Strip."

"I call on the Palestinian Authority, especially in the West Bank, to stop its policy of aggression and attacks on our people … Unfortunately, we have recently witnessed impertinence by some among the security forces toward our people, even during prisoner release celebrations."

The PA rejected the accusations and claimed the escalation was set up by Hamas with the goal of undermining stability in the area. Security services spokesperson Talal Dweikat hinted that Hamas was the one acting in Israel's interest, saying that what happened in the territories "came as part of shifting from its natural course to serve the occupation intentionally or unintentionally."

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