Palestinian authority, security forces crack down on Jenin terror groups

Palestinian Authority security forces on Sunday continued a rare crackdown on terror strongholds in Jenin.

An Israeli military source described the raids to The Press Service of Israel as "the most serious Palestinian operation in recent years."

The operation, which began yesterday morning, has prompted a general strike across the area, with businesses, schools, and UNRWA offices closing in protest. Human rights organizations are urging the PA to end the campaign. Dubbed "Operation Homeland Defense," PA forces have taken control of four neighborhoods in the Jenin refugee camp, surrounded hospitals, and conducted thorough searches in alleyways.

A Palestinian Authority source told TPS-IL that the raids were directly ordered by PA President Mahmoud Abbas, "who ordered the security forces not to return home until you gain full control of the camp, whatever the cost..."

During the operation, PA forces killed Yazid Ja'isa, a commander in the Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror group. Ja'isa had previously clashed with the PA, including an incident where he seized weapons from Palestinian police guarding Joseph's Tomb and proposed exchanging the weapons for the release of Islamic Jihad members imprisoned in Jericho.

According to the Palestinian source, "In recent weeks, the Palestinian Authority forces have tried to hold talks with the terrorist organizations, but they have once again provoked the Palestinian Authority, fired at government institutions and even confiscated Palestinian Authority vehicles and driven them around the camp..."

A senior PA official told TPS-IL the crackdown is part of a broader strategy to demonstrate PA authority's ability to maintain governance -- Ramallah eyes eventually administering the Gaza Strip.

"This is about restoring Palestinian control in Judea and Samaria and eventually Gaza," the official stated, emphasizing the importance of demonstrating governance capacity to international stakeholders, particularly the United States.

The operation has sparked unrest in other areas. Terrorists in Jenin have called on refugee camps in the area of Shechem (Nablus) to join the fighting.