PA police prevent IDF from entering Jenin, fire rifles in air
Videos posted to social media show stand-off between Israeli, Palestinian forces in northern West Bank; army says it’s investigating
Judah Ari Gross is The Times of Israel's religions and Diaspora affairs correspondent.
Palestinian Authority police prevented Israeli security forces from entering the West Bank city of Jenin on Sunday afternoon, according to videos posted on social media websites.
The Israel Defense Forces said it was looking into the incident.
In the footage posted by the Palestinian Ma’an news agency, the PA security officers, armed with assault rifles, can be seen standing in front of IDF vehicles, blocking their entrance into the city.
As the armored jeeps approach, the Palestinian officers can be heard shouting and cocking their weapons.
After a few moments, the Israeli armored jeeps make a U-turn and exit the city.
In one such clip, posted by the Hamas-linked al-Quds News Network, the Palestinian officers can be heard firing shots in the air as the Israeli vehicles leave the city.
https://twitter.com/qudsn/status/807944280027394048
The IDF did not respond to a Times of Israel query about the incident, but told the Ynet news website that the troops had not coordinated with the Palestinian Authority about the specific roadway they attempted to use to enter the city.
A short while later, the troops entered Jenin through a different entrance to the city.
According to Ynet, the army said the shots fired by the PA security forces had been meant to scare off local residents, and had not been aimed at the Israeli forces.
The city of Jenin is considered to be a part of Area A, the portion of the West Bank under the control of the Palestinian Authority. As such, Israeli forces are not supposed to enter the area.
In practice, however, IDF troops enter the city regularly, typically as part of arrest raids.
Last month, for instance, Israeli soldiers shuttered an alleged gunsmith workshop in Jenin, welding the doors closed and arresting a resident of the city.
However, these types of operations typically occur at night as opposed to Sunday’s incident, which took place in broad daylight.
A similar incident, also caught on video, occurred a year ago in Beitunia, outside Ramallah, which is also a part of Area A.
On December 21, 2015, Israeli forces entered the town, in pursuit of teenagers who had allegedly been throwing stones.
Inside Beitunia, Palestinian police officers led by Lieutenant Akef al-Shalan threatened the Border Police officers and forced them out of the city, the Palestinian Ma’an news service reported at the time.
