Market2024–2025 Palestinian Authority operation in Jenin
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2024–2025 Palestinian Authority operation in Jenin

On 5 December 2024, the Palestinian Authority (PA) began a large-scale operation in the West Bank city of Jenin against the Jenin Brigades, a local Palestinian militia. The PA called it "Operation Protect the Homeland" and said it was launched in order to "eradicate sedition and chaos" in the West Bank, portraying militants as agents of instability that are indirectly aiding the Israeli far-right, which has sought to weaken the PA.

Background
Since 2022, there has been an ongoing armed conflict between the Palestinian Authority and local anti-Israel militias, which has escalated during the ongoing Gaza war. The Palestinian Authority, which autonomously governs the Palestinian enclaves of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, has been frequently characterized as a partner of Israel and complicit in the occupation. The PA, widely perceived as ineffective, has been also been seeking to bolster its credibility as an administration capable of strong governance and suppressing militants. The PA also seeks to improve the chances of an outcome to the ongoing Gaza war where it governs the Gaza Strip. its success in that campaign emboldened it to conduct the operation against the Jenin Brigades. Finally, the PA has feared that West Bank militias may be inspired by the rapid December 2024 fall of the Assad regime in Syria and aim to topple the PA. Jenin has historically been a hotbed of conflict between Palestinian militants and Israel, and the city's refugee camp has especially been a militant stronghold. The Jenin Brigades formed in the city in 2021 and has engaged in confrontations with both Israel and the Palestinian Authority. The semi-autonomous Brigades operate simultaneously under three militant factions: Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, and Hamas. == Timeline of events ==
Timeline of events
2024 5 December Clashes broke out between the PA security forces and militants in Jenin after the former arrested several wanted militants in the city. During the clashes, militants seized two vehicles belonging to the security forces, which were later seen paraded around Jenin. 14 December Brigadier General Anwar Rajab, a spokesman for the PA security forces, formally announced the operation and vowed that the PA would regain control of the Jenin refugee camp. Rajab also compared local militants to ISIS. Security forces operating in the Jenin camp killed Yazid Jaayseh, a commander of the Jenin Brigades. That night, civilians demonstrated in favor of the Jenin Brigades, and security forces stationed near the city's Shifa Hospital opened fire on the crowd, causing injuries. UNRWA announced the suspension of its services in the Jenin camp on account of the fighting. 15 December The United States asked Israel to urgently approve a supply of equipment and ammunition for the PA forces operating in Jenin. 16 December The Palestinian Authority claimed its security forces had made significant advances in the Jenin refugee camp, and that half the camp was now under operational control. The residents of Jenin also undertook a general strike in protest of the operation. 18 December An unnamed commander of the Jenin Brigades reported that attempted negotiations with the security forces ended in failure. 20 December PA security forces forcibly removed protestors who were demonstrating against the operation. UNRWA reported that it no longer had control over its Jenin health center due to the presence of "Palestinian armed actors". 23 December Fatah, the party that governs the Palestinian Authority, announced its decision to ban the Qatari media network Al Jazeera from operating in the West Bank and condemned it for "incitement" during its coverage of the operation. Fatah accused Al Jazeera of sowing division "in our Arab homeland in general and in Palestine in particular," and called on Palestinians to avoid cooperating with the network. 2025 1 January PA forces implemented the ban on Al Jazeera, with PA police raiding their office in Ramallah and handing over a suspension order. 6 January The Jenin Brigades targeted PA forces withdrawing from the entrance to Jenin with gunfire and an IED. Jenin Brigades members carried out the al-Funduq shooting against three Israelis and then returned, undetected, to the Jenin camp; the attack was meant to be a message to the PA– that it could not stifle militants' reprisals against the Israeli occupation. 14 January An Israeli Air Force aircraft bombed the Jenin camp, killing six Palestinians, including civilians and at least four militants. It marked the first time the IDF has targeted the refugee camp amid the PA siege. The PA itself condemned the airstrike as a disruptive interference with their operation. The Jenin Brigades said that it accepted an initiative for ending Palestinian infighting. 15 January The IDF launched a second airstrike on Jenin, killing six Palestinians, including at least one militant, 19 January The truce failed to hold as fighting resumed in the Jenin camp. The Jenin Brigades claimed that the PA had violated the agreement and militants reportedly opened fire on PA forces in the camp. 21 January PA forces withdrew from their positions as the IDF began a major raid on the Jenin camp, == Aftermath ==
Aftermath
The day after Israel began its raid on Jenin, PA forces resumed anti-militant operations inside the city alongside the Israeli forces. It marks the first time that the PA directly participates in an Israeli raid. At a news conference in January and in an interview in February, Brigadier General Rajab outlined what he said were accomplishments of the PA operation, namely the arrest of hundreds of militants and their accomplices, the seizing of illicit funds, explosives, and weapons, and the defusing of bombs in Jenin neighborhoods meant to target Israeli forces. == Humanitarian impact and alleged human rights violations ==
Humanitarian impact and alleged human rights violations
The operation left the Jenin refugee camp under siege, with no movement in or out, cuts to electricity and water, and ambulances unable to enter or exit. A team from the Palestine Red Crescent Society testified to being detained, beaten and interrogated by PA forces for two and a half days while they were trying to deliver medications to besieged families. After the attempted ceasefire failed to hold, local sources reported on 20 January 2025 that PA forces were setting fire to various houses in the Jenin camp. Later, the PA admitted "full responsibility" for Shalabi's killing. On 3 January 2025, Mahmoud al-Jalqamousi and his son, Qasem Mahmoud al-Jalqamousi, were shot and killed when they stepped onto the roof of their house in the Jenin camp. == Related fighting outside of Jenin ==
Related fighting outside of Jenin
Clashes between militants and security forces in response to the events in Jenin were also reported in Nablus and Tulkarm on 10 December 2024, and in Tammoun, south of Tubas, on 24 December 2024. On 7 January 2025, three militants, including a founder of the Tulkarm Brigade, were wounded after PA forces opened fire on their vehicle in Attil, north of Tulkarm. A similar PA attack against militants in Tulkarm occurred again on 12 January. == Reactions ==
Reactions
Palestinian militant organizations Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and the Popular Resistance Committees all condemned the Palestinian Authority's operation, including the killing of Jaayseh. Hamas official Abdul-Rahman Shadeed said that the PA must "strengthen the national cause" instead of suppressing anti-Israel militancy. == Notes ==
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