The Jenin Battalion, whose members are affiliated with the Iran-backed Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), announced over the weekend that it won’t allow anyone to confiscate its weapons. The announcement is seen as a direct challenge to the Palestinian Authority security forces, who have arrested several PIJ men in the West Bank over the past few weeks.
“We will absolutely not allow anyone, whoever it is, to take the weapons of the resistance away from us,” the armed group said in a statement at a rally on Friday night to commemorate 12 Palestinians killed during last month’s large-scale Israeli security operation in Jenin Refugee Camp. Most of the slain Palestinians have been identified as gunmen.. Dozens of masked gunmen from various Palestinian factions participated in the rally.
Saeed Nakhleh, a senior PIJ official, said the rally carried “several fiery messages to the Israeli occupation, first and foremost that attempts to eliminate the resistance fighters will fail.” He said the Jenin Battalion won’t target the Palestinian security forces “to avoid schism in the societal fabric.”
Nakhleh added: “Although the security forces of the Palestinian Authority are chasing and arresting the resistance fighters on orders from the occupation and the US, our rifles will remain directed only toward the Zionist enemy. The day will come when the members of the security forces will realize that what they did against the mujahidin (warriors) was not right.”
The Jenin Battalion, described by some Palestinians as the largest militia operating in the West Bank, said that its weapons “will remain directed toward the [Israeli] enemy’s chest,” indicating that its members are not interested in an armed confrontation with the Palestinian Authority security forces or other factions.
Jenin Battalion's warning to the PA
Recently, the Jenin Battalion warned the Palestinian Authority against continuing the security crackdown on gunmen, especially in the Jenin area. The warning came after the Palestinian security forces arrested several members of another armed group in the village of Jaba’ near Jenin. The men were arrested on suspicion they attacked and set fire to a Palestinian police station to protest the earlier arrest of two of their friends, Murad Malaisheh and Mohammed Barahmeh.
In its statement, the Jenin Battalion claimed that the “heroic battle of Jenin has established clear deterrence equations in the face of the Zionist enemy.”
The militia warned that the Israeli military would pay a heavy price if it tries to enter Jenin again. “We warn the Zionist enemy against attempting to launch any aggression or attack on the Jenin camp, and we affirm that we are always ready to repel the aggression and defeat you, God willing,” the statement read. “Our weapons are ready to defend our people, our land, and our camp. We will continue to resist this occupation until the last bullet and the last fighter. There will be no retreat or surrender; either victory or martyrdom.”
As the rally was underway in the Jenin Refugee Camp, clashes erupted between residents of the city of Tubas (in the northern West Bank) and Palestinian security forces. The clashes began after Palestinian security officers arrested Uda al-Shahrouri, a local activist wanted by Israeli security forces for his alleged involvement in terrorism. Shahrouri was arrested after an hours-long standoff during which he barricaded himself inside his sister’s house and threatened to shoot himself. He was eventually persuaded to surrender to the Palestinian officers.
In the ensuing clashes, protesters burned tires, blocked roads and threw stones at Palestinian security officers, who responded with tear-gas and stun grenades. Last week, the Palestinian security forces arrested another Tubas resident, Ahmed Abu al-Aidah, who is also wanted by Israel for his alleged involvement in terrorism. That arrest also sparked clashes between dozens of young men and Palestinian security forces. Palestinian sources said at least six other men from Tubas have been taken into custody by the Palestinian security forces.
The Ramallah-based Lawyers for Justice group condemned the arrests carried out by the Palestinian Authority in Tubas. It said the arrests are “part of a broader campaign” targeting a number of Palestinian cities “involved in the escalating national situation,” reference to attacks carried out against Israeli civilians and soldiers. The group said that since the beginning of this year it documented 727 cases in which Palestinians were arrested by the Palestinian security forces because of their political affiliation or for expressing their opinion. Some of those arrested were subjected to torture, including beatings and electric shocks, it revealed.