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Home Posts IDF Operation in Jenin: Collapsing the Palestinian Authority or Ensuring Regional Security?

IDF Operation in Jenin: Collapsing the Palestinian Authority or Ensuring Regional Security?
Yohanan Tzoreff
22 January, 2025

On January 21, the IDF launched Operation “Iron Wall” in the Jenin refugee camp to “maintain freedom of action” throughout the West Bank and neutralize threatening terror infrastructures, according to IDF statements. The prime minister and the defense minister added that the operation was conducted under the government’s directive to thwart terrorism and strengthen security in Judea and Samaria, emphasizing that Israel is “acting systematically and decisively against the Iranian axis wherever it extends its arms . . .” Minister Smotrich even proudly noted that this operation is part of the war objectives added at his request during the January 18 cabinet meeting, following the deadly attack in the Palestinian village of Funduq on January 6, in which three Israelis were killed.

This operation takes place against the backdrop of the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, a decision whose approval by the Israeli government was met with great resistance and challenges to the coalition’s stability. Ministers who viewed the ceasefire as a future security threat demanded the expansion of IDF operations in Judea and Samaria.

In parallel, for over a month, Palestinian security forces have been conducting a large-scale operation in the Jenin refugee camp, targeting what they describe as “armed lawbreakers” disrupting order in the camp and arresting individuals wanted by the IDF. This move is noteworthy given the current heightened tensions and the desire of the Palestinian Authority (PA) to demonstrate resolve in the face of a growing loss of control and the perception of its weakness, particularly in volatile areas like Jenin.

The IDF operation is taking place while the Palestinian security forces are still present in the area, after having imposed a siege on the refugee camp and reaching a ceasefire agreement with the armed factions inside. However, the militants violated the agreement, claiming that the Palestinian security forces did not withdraw their snipers from around the camp and effectively collaborated with the IDF, which simultaneously carried out targeted airstrikes on wanted individuals inside the camp. The Palestinian security forces left the camp in humiliation around the start of the operation, having received notifications from the IDF via pagers announcing the assault.

Meanwhile, Zaher Jabarin, a senior Hamas leader based in Turkey who is currently responsible for Hamas operations in the West Bank, is using the operation to criticize the PA and link Gaza with the West Bank. He claims that Israel makes no distinction between different Palestinian factions or between Gaza and the West Bank, urging the PA to convene a national conference to declare Palestinian unity.

The PA, for its part, remains committed to its political approach, refusing to play into Hamas’s hands. Recently, it even launched a campaign against Hamas, highlighting its supposed “achievements” and the immense suffering it has caused the Palestinians through its actions on October 7. It seems that the IDF operation comes at a highly inconvenient time for the PA, strengthening the arguments of its rivals, such as Jabarin and others, who warn that Israel’s government is attempting to engineer its collapse.

Topics: Israeli-Palestinian Relations
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  • Research

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      • Israel and the Global Powers
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      • Iran and the Shi'ite Axis
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      • Lebanon and Hezbollah
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