Palestinian Authority security forces exited the area following a month-long operation of its own against local Palestinian terror groups.
The IDF began a wide-ranging operation on Palestinian terror in Jenin on Tuesday, killing several terrorists in the mission meant to last a minimum of several days and potentially much longer.
The campaign, dubbed “Operation Iron Wall,” includes drones and helicopter air support. There were also reportedly tanks in the vicinity – although not entering Jenin – and the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency), Duvdevan, Egoz, other special forces, and engineering forces from Battalion 90 were all involved.
Similar campaigns this year have lasted a week or more, with the IDF saying the dual goals were to thwart “ticking bomb” (imminent) terror operations and to preserve IDF mobility in all areas of Judea and Samaria.
The IDF noted that several Palestinian terrorists were killed and others wounded but did not give a number. Prior to the IDF operation, the Palestinian Authority security forces exited the area following a month-long operation of its own against local Palestinian terror groups.
Although the IDF told The Jerusalem Post it gave the PA stronger than usual marks for going deeper into Jenin – even into the Jenin refugee camp – and getting its hands dirtier than usual against local terror, it appears that the January 6 Palestinian terror attack near Kedumim convinced the defense establishment that the efforts were still insufficient.
Palestinian security personnel and mourners seen in the West Bank city of Nablus, December 27, 2024 (credit: NASSER ISHTAYEH/FLASH90)
That terror attack was carried out by Jenin Palestinian Islamic-Jihad linked terrorists.
PA terror crackdown
The unusual PA operation in Jenin – the PA security forces had not entered the Jenin refugee camp in years – came about and was provoked after those local terror groups carried out a series of attacks on PA security forces, one of their cars, and a PA security station.
Defense Minister Israel Katz said the operation was also a broader show of force against Palestinian terror to deter Hamas and others from making trouble in the West Bank now that there are ceasefires with Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza.
“This is another step toward achieving the goal we have set – strengthening security in Judea and Samaria,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said of the operation.
“We are systematically and resolutely acting against the Iranian axis wherever it extends its reach – in Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, and Judea and Samaria,” he continued.
Moreover, some top Israeli officials were eager to show that the release of 95 Palestinian security prisoners into the West Bank as part of the hostage exchange deal with Hamas would not cause the IDF to lose control of the area.
It was unclear how supportive IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Herzi Halevi was of the operation, given that he announced his resignation the same day the operation started, and such an operation has been demanded by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, with whom Halevi has had a borderline hostile relationship.
Following the operation, Hamas called for full “mobilization” in the West Bank on Tuesday.
Hamas also slammed the PA for its cooperation with the IDF, opening up a new chasm within the Palestinian camp at a time when many international parties are hoping the sides will work together in the near future to manage Gaza
