Axios: U.S. asks Israel to approve urgent military aid to Palestinian security forces

[Dennis Donovan]

Axios - U.S. asks Israel to approve urgent military aid to Palestinian security forces

Barak Ravid
22 mins ago



The Biden administration asked Israel to approve U.S. military assistance to Palestinian Authority security forces for a wide-ranging operation the PA is conducting in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, Palestinian, U.S. and Israeli officials told Axios.

Why it matters: The security operation to regain control in the city of Jenin and its refugee camp from militants is the largest conducted by Palestinian security forces in years.

-Palestinian and Israeli officials said the operation is focused on a local armed group that includes militants affiliated with both Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) and Hamas. Both groups receive funding from Iran.

-"This operation is a make or break moment for the Palestinian Authority," one Palestinian official said.

-Palestinian and U.S. officials said Palestinian leadership launched the operation out of fear that Islamist militants — emboldened after armed rebels took control of Syria — could try to overthrow the Palestinian Authority.

Driving the news: The security situation in Jenin has been deteriorating for months as the Palestinian Authority's control has gradually weakened. Local militants took control of the Jenin refugee camp more than a year ago and Palestinian Authority security forces refrained from entering it.

-Last week, Palestinian security forces tried to arrest several PIJ and Hamas militants who stole Palestinian security forces vehicles and used them for an armed parade through the refugee camp.

-The arrest attempt failed after violence broke out between the militants and the Palestinian security forces.

-A day later, the militants detonated a car bomb near a police station in Jenin, wounding three Palestinian policemen and two civilians.

/snip