Since 2005, Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) has worn three hats, serving as President of the Palestinian Authority (PA), General Secretary of the PLO, and Chairman of Fatah. Along with scoring several achievements for the Palestinians during his tenure, Abbas is also accountable for a number of failures, foremost among them the split between the PA in the West Bank and Hamas, which took over the Gaza Strip in 2007. The difficulty caused by this internal rift compounds the lack of progress toward the long-sought goal of an independent...
The Palestinian arena presents a core challenge to Israel’s national security. The current government, like its predecessor, seeks to buy time and to postpone weighty strategic decisions on the Palestinian issue. This conflict management strategy has four consequences: One: Increased potential for weakening the Palestinian Authority’s governance and legitimacy, which could intensify in advance of “the day after Mahmoud Abbas,” thus leading to a rise in terrorism and the lack of a responsible Palestinian...
The proposed transfer of the Civil Administration and the Coordination of Government Operations in the Territories (COGAT) from the authority of the Minister of Defense to the authority of a minister from the Religious Zionist Party is intended, in the eyes of the incoming government, to correct the injustice to the settlement population and to implement the conditions for the application of Israeli law in the Jewish communities in the West Bank. Since 1967 Israel has refrained from declaring sovereignty over the West Bank...
The recent friction between Givati Brigade soldiers and leftist activists in Hebron is the tip of the iceberg of extensive and significant phenomena related to the operational conduct of soldiers toward civilians, the responsibility of commanders, and the job of military policing in the Palestinian territories. The incidents also relate to the demographic structure of the units in the zones ridden with ongoing hostilities. Furthermore, regarding the use of force, the friction and the response to it bespeak a conceptual and normative...
The results of the Knesset elections did not surprise the Palestinians, who have followed the changes in Israeli society over the last decade or more vis-à-vis the Palestinian issue, and especially the rising support for parties opposed to a political resolution. In this context, they increasingly question the benefit of continued reliance on the process created with the Oslo Accords. Herein, however, lies the trap: the establishment of the Palestinian Authority was an achievement worth maintaining, yet this achievement has not...
As expected, the Israeli security establishment, and in cooperation with the Palestinian security apparatuses, succeeded in dismantling the Lion’s Den armed group in Nablus and substantially weakening the more veteran Jenin Brigade. The two groups propounded a militant ethos and many young people across the West Bank and East Jerusalem are interested in imitating their actions, in light of the loss of hope for the future, as well as in protest against the Palestinian Authority, which they see as a municipal authority of the...
The move away from the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian dispute, whether intentional or inadvertent, accelerates a trend of sliding toward a one-state reality. However, the assumption that after decades of conflict and bloodshed the two peoples can live together belies common sense. In the context of sliding toward one state, three scenarios, which can be dubbed “gray rhinos,” are galloping toward us, as we are ignore their dangerous approach: the creation of a mixed and intertwined way of life for Jews and Palestinians...
The Lion’s Den phenomenon serves as both another signal to Israel that it will not be able to “contain” the Palestinian territories forever, and another expression of the weakening of the Palestinian Authority as the day after Abbas approaches. A number of scenarios could result from the current situation: (1) a sweeping grass-roots initiative that draws the Palestinian people into action that will change the leadership and the current rules of the game; (2) a takeover by Hamas of the situation’s dynamics, leading to increased terror...
Recent months have seen a steep rise in the use of live fire in the Palestinian cities in the West Bank against IDF forces, as well as in the number of shooting incidents and other attacks. Behind the shootings are primarily young Palestinians, including Fatah operatives, and this phenomenon reflects the chaos within the Palestinian Authority. The Israeli security response, which focuses on counter-terrorism and widespread arrests of suspects, generates a self-sustaining cycle of escalation and heightens the motivation among young...
Israel’s current mode of operation against the escalation of attacks in the West Bank provides fertile ground for the intensification of the Palestinian ethos of resistance. From the perspective of the armed Palestinian operatives, the cost of the violent friction with IDF forces is not overly high. Symbols of national struggle are born each day and the sense of capability and expectations of the armed struggle are intensifying in the hearts and collective consciousness of the younger generation and provide motivation to join...
Frequent security incidents in the West Bank raise questions about the conduct of Fatah, which is controlled by the Palestinian Authority. Involvement of Fatah members in clashes with IDF forces and cooperation between them and other organizations, especially in the northern West Bank, show Fatah’s lack of central control, the division into factions, and activity based on local instructions. This situation undermines stability across the West Bank, further weakens Abu Mazen’s control, and presents a complex challenge for Israel. Many...
The response to Islamic Jihad threats last week and Operation Breaking Dawn hurt the supply of essential goods to Gaza, including fuel, and suspended the entry of Palestinian workers into Israel. This complicates Gaza’s economic recovery. Gaza’s GDP shrank more than 13 percent with the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The graph charts GDP per capita in Gaza, 2019-2022.
