The recent operations in Nablus were classified as terrorist assassinations and not arrests, a rare mission in the Israel Defense Forces operations in Judea & Samaria. It was very successful, with an impressive intelligence capability by the internal intelligence agency Shin Bet, not only in intelligence gathering but also in cyber operations. However, the response by the Palestinian Authority has been nothing short of troubling.
At the beginning of the week, it was the Palestinian Minister of Health, Mai-Al-Kaila, who praised the “Lions Den” terrorist gang that carried out attacks against Israeli civilian and military targets. This was the first time a member of the Palestinian government praised and congratulated the terrorist group.
Palestinian Health Minister Mai Al-Kaila praises the 'Lion's Den' terror group, responsible for recent attacks on Israeli military positions and settlements: "Praises & respect to the 'Lion's Den' who are present, to the martyrs and their families and to every citizen in Nablus." pic.twitter.com/qhxYsitsZc
— Ariel Oseran (@ariel_oseran) October 25, 2022
Mai-Al-Kaila’s public statements are just the beginning of a new trend. Palestinian Prime Minister, Mohammad Shtayyeh, paid a visit to the Jenin “refugee camp” and met there with Fathi Hazem, the father of the terrorist who carried out the attack on Dizengoff Street in Tel Aviv just a few months back. By virtue of his position, Shtayyeh bears responsibility for the Palestinian security circles, and his visit to the camp at this time surprised senior Israeli officials, who usually praise the Palestinian Authority’s security forces.
Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh paid a visit to Jenin refugee camp where he offered his condolences to the families of the Palestinians recently killed by Israeli soldiers and told them that the blood of their sons will not be in vain
— Wafa News Agency - English (@WAFANewsEnglish) October 17, 2022
More: https://t.co/46rxiLGn8l pic.twitter.com/tSDcRWl5kC
The Palestinian Authority has not openly supported terrorism since the Second Intifada when they enabled the violence through radio silence and public statements that called to rise against the “occupying Zionists”.
There is no doubt that the IDF has been doing an amazing job paralyzing the growing terrorist squads within Northern Samaria. Still, there are some in Israel who think the hype around recent activities is needless.
Operations like the ones taking place every night this week so far in Nablus and Jenin were common practice less than 20 years ago during the Intifada. Those Intifada-related operations were managed and planned out by local brigade commanders, or at best the general commanding the entire Judea and Samaria division.
@IDF, ISA forces operated in Nablus against the “Lion’s Den” (“Arin Alousud”) terrorist group. The security forces carried out raids on several buildings and apprehended three terrorists from the "Lion's Den" suspected of involvement in terror-related activities. pic.twitter.com/MuY5KxPnSx
— Samuel J. Rosenfeld 🇺🇸 (@SamjLondon) October 26, 2022
The recent operations were conducted by top security officials. The image of Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi, Shin Bet Chief Ronan Bar, and the head of the Operations Division, Major General Oded Basiuk, taking part in fighting such a small organization, may be perceived as a weakness by some Israeli enemies. In either scenario of how the current developments are perceived, the IDF’s goal is t destroy the Lions Den terrorist squad in Northern Samaria, and that is precisely what they are doing.
