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PA Forces Launch Rare Counter-Terror Op Amid Fears of Coup

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas attends the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, April 28, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed
JNS.org – Palestinian Authority forces are carrying out a rare operation against terrorist organizations in the Samaria city of Jenin due to fears that they could attempt a coup inspired by the rebel takedown of Bashar Assad’s regime in Syria.
The operation, dubbed “Defense of the Homeland,” was launched by Ramallah following the Dec. 5 seizure by Hamas and Islamic Jihad of a P.A. “military” vehicle in the Jenin camp, a hotbed of Iranian-backed terrorism, Israel’s Channel 12 News reported on Sunday.
According to Arab media reports, two Palestinian terrorists have so far been killed by the P.A., including Yazid Jaysa, a leader in the Islamic Jihad-led Jenin Brigades who was reportedly also wanted by Israel.
In addition, at least 14 Palestinians were wounded in the clashes, and an unknown number of suspects were arrested, according to local reports.
Several explosives detonated as P.A. forces took control of four districts of the “refugee camp” over the weekend. Ramallah said its forces worked to neutralize a bomb that was to be used against “civilians and security forces as part of a criminal act that reflects the approach of ISIS.”
The operation is being carried out at the order of P.A. chief Mahmoud Abbas and is being commanded by Maj. Gen. Nidal Abu Dukhan, the head of the Palestinian Authority’s National Security Forces (NSF). P.A. Prime Minister Muhammad Mustafa also visited Jenin on Saturday, where he received a security briefing from senior P.A. officials.
Under the terms of the Oslo Accords, which Israel signed with the PLO in the 1990s, the newly created P.A. was tasked with fighting terrorism in parts of Judea and Samaria.
In recent years, Iranian-backed terrorist groups have taken over cities and towns in northern Samaria, including Jenin and Tulkarem, prompting the Israel Defense Forces to carry out counter-terror raids.
IDF soldiers have not entered Jenin over the past two weeks to give the P.A. “a real opportunity to act,” according to Sunday’s Channel 12 report.
‘The regime must fall’
Hamas in recent weeks has urged Palestinians to take to the streets of Judea and Samaria and demonstrate against Ramallah’s alleged crackdown on terrorism, with Jenin residents heeding the call.
In a statement last week, the terrorist group condemned “the continued actions of the security services of the P.A. in pursuing resistance fighters and those wanted by the occupation [i.e., Israel], as well as the ongoing targeting of them in all governorates of the West Bank, especially in Jenin.”
During a Dec. 10 funeral procession in Jenin, terrorists could be heard chanting, “The regime must fall. Abbas and his entourage must fall. The people want to end the regime.” They also praised the Iranian regime.
Also last week, Palestinian media reported that Islamic Jihad terrorists from Tulkarem in western Samaria shot at the headquarters of the P.A. police in the city, lightly wounding two officers.
Israel’s defense establishment is monitoring the situation in Judea and Samaria, fearing a domino effect that could lead to the collapse of the P.A. following the events in Syria, Army Radio reported on Dec. 11.
“We are closely and vigilantly monitoring what is happening. We fear unrest, rapid deterioration and a contagion effect like we saw in Syria,” unnamed security sources told the radio station.
According to Army Radio’s sources, the P.A.’s collapse might cause “a wave of terrorism and a complete loss of stability in the area.”
On Thursday, Defense Minister Israel Katz instructed the IDF to raise the state of alert in Judea and Samaria and prepare for a possible uptick in terrorist attacks. Katz ordered the military to increase the protection of communities and traffic arteries due to fears that terrorists could be inspired by the rapid takeover of Syria, he noted in a statement.
Katz said in the statement, “Israel is determined to defend its borders and communities in the south, north and east against any threat—we will not allow a return to the reality of before October 7, [2023].”
The post PA Forces Launch Rare Counter-Terror Op Amid Fears of Coup first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Hamas Warns Against Cooperation with US Relief Efforts In Bid to Restore Grip on Gaza

Hamas terrorists carry grenade launchers at the funeral of Marwan Issa, a senior Hamas deputy military commander who was killed in an Israeli airstrike during the conflict between Israel and Hamas, in the central Gaza Strip, Feb. 7, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ramadan Abed
The Hamas-run Interior Ministry in Gaza has warned residents not to cooperate with the US- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, as the terror group seeks to reassert its grip on the enclave amid mounting international pressure to accept a US-brokered ceasefire.
“It is strictly forbidden to deal with, work for, or provide any form of assistance or cover to the American organization (GHF) or its local or foreign agents,” the Interior Ministry said in a statement Thursday.
“Legal action will be taken against anyone proven to be involved in cooperation with this organization, including the imposition of the maximum penalties stipulated in the applicable national laws,” the statement warns.
The GHF released a statement in response to Hamas’ warnings, saying the organization has delivered millions of meals “safely and without interference.”
“This statement from the Hamas-controlled Interior Ministry confirms what we’ve known all along: Hamas is losing control,” the GHF said.
The GHF began distributing food packages in Gaza in late May, implementing a new aid delivery model aimed at preventing the diversion of supplies by Hamas, as Israel continues its defensive military campaign against the Palestinian terrorist group.
The initiative has drawn criticism from the UN and international organizations, some of which have claimed that Jerusalem is causing starvation in the war-torn enclave.
Israel has vehemently denied such accusations, noting that, until its recently imposed blockade, it had provided significant humanitarian aid in the enclave throughout the war.
Israeli officials have also said much of the aid that flows into Gaza is stolen by Hamas, which uses it for terrorist operations and sells the rest at high prices to Gazan civilians.
According to their reports, the organization has delivered over 56 million meals to Palestinians in just one month.
Hamas’s latest threat comes amid growing international pressure to accept a US-backed ceasefire plan proposed by President Donald Trump, which sets a 60-day timeline to finalize the details leading to a full resolution of the conflict.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump announced that Israel has agreed to the “necessary conditions” to finalize a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza, though Israel has not confirmed this claim.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to meet with Trump next week in Washington, DC — his third visit in less than six months — as they work to finalize the terms of the ceasefire agreement.
Even though Trump hasn’t provided details on the proposed truce, he said Washington would “work with all parties to end the war” during the 60-day period.
“I hope, for the good of the Middle East, that Hamas takes this Deal, because it will not get better — IT WILL ONLY GET WORSE,” he wrote in a social media post.
Since the start of the war, ceasefire talks between Jerusalem and Hamas have repeatedly failed to yield enduring results.
Israeli officials have previously said they will only agree to end the war if Hamas surrenders, disarms, and goes into exile — a demand the terror group has firmly rejected.
“I am telling you — there will be no Hamas,” Netanyahu said during a speech Wednesday.
For its part, Hamas has said it is willing to release the remaining 50 hostages — fewer than half of whom are believed to be alive — in exchange for a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and an end to the war.
While the terrorist group said it is “ready and serious” to reach a deal that would end the war, it has yet to accept this latest proposal.
In a statement, the group said it aims to reach an agreement that “guarantees an end to the aggression, the withdrawal [of Israeli forces], and urgent relief for our people in the Gaza Strip.”
According to media reports, the proposed 60-day ceasefire would include a partial Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, a surge in humanitarian aid, and the release of the remaining hostages held by Hamas, with US and mediator assurances on advancing talks to end the war — though it remains unclear how many hostages would be freed.
For Israel, the key to any deal is the release of most, if not all, hostages still held in Gaza, as well as the disarmament of Hamas, while the terror group is seeking assurances to end the war as it tries to reassert control over the war-torn enclave.
The post Hamas Warns Against Cooperation with US Relief Efforts In Bid to Restore Grip on Gaza first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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UK Lawmakers Move to Designate Palestine Action as Terrorist Group Following RAF Vandalism Protest

Police block a street as pro-Palestinian demonstrators gather to protest British Home Secretary Yvette Cooper’s plans to proscribe the “Palestine Action” group in the coming weeks, in London, Britain, June 23, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Jaimi Joy
British lawmakers voted Wednesday to designate Palestine Action as a terrorist organization, following the group’s recent vandalizing of two military aircraft at a Royal Air Force base in protest of the government’s support for Israel.
Last month, members of the UK-based anti-Israel group Palestine Action broke into RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, a county west of London, and vandalized two Voyager aircraft used for military transport and refueling — the latest in a series of destructive acts carried out by the organization.
Palestine Action has regularly targeted British sites connected to Israeli defense firm Elbit Systems as well as other companies in Britain linked to Israel since the start of the conflict in Gaza in 2023.
Under British law, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has the authority to ban an organization if it is believed to commit, promote, or otherwise be involved in acts of terrorism.
Passed overwhelmingly by a vote of 385 to 26 in the lower chamber — the House of Commons — the measure is now set to be reviewed by the upper chamber, the House of Lords, on Thursday.
If approved, the ban would take effect within days, making it a crime to belong to or support Palestine Action and placing the group on the same legal footing as Al Qaeda, Hamas, and the Islamic State under UK law.
Palestine Action, which claims that Britain is an “active participant” in the Gaza conflict due to its military support for Israel, condemned the ban as “an unhinged reaction” and announced plans to challenge it in court — similar to the legal challenges currently being mounted by Hamas.
Under the Terrorism Act 2000, belonging to a proscribed group is a criminal offense punishable by up to 14 years in prison or a fine, while wearing clothing or displaying items supporting such a group can lead to up to six months in prison and/or a fine of up to £5,000.
Palestine Action claimed responsibility for the recent attack, in which two of its activists sprayed red paint into the turbine engines of two Airbus Voyager aircraft and used crowbars to inflict additional damage.
According to the group, the red paint — also sprayed across the runway — was meant to symbolize “Palestinian bloodshed.” A Palestine Liberation Organization flag was also left at the scene.
On Thursday, local authorities arrested four members of the group, aged between 22 and 35, who were charged with conspiracy to enter a prohibited place knowingly for a purpose prejudicial to the safety or interests of the UK, as well as conspiracy to commit criminal damage.
Palestine Action said this latest attack was carried out as a protest against the planes’ role in supporting what the group called Israel’s “genocide” in Gaza.
At the time of the attack, Cooper condemned the group’s actions, stating that their behavior had grown increasingly aggressive and resulted in millions of pounds in damages.
“The disgraceful attack on Brize Norton … is the latest in a long history of unacceptable criminal damage committed by Palestine Action,” Cooper said in a written statement.
“The UK’s defense enterprise is vital to the nation’s national security and this government will not tolerate those that put that security at risk,” she continued.
The post UK Lawmakers Move to Designate Palestine Action as Terrorist Group Following RAF Vandalism Protest first appeared on Algemeiner.com.