Security officials said to believe PA interested in reestablishing coordination
Senior figures in Ramallah have passed along messages expressing interest in gradually renewing security ties, 3.5 months after freezing them in response to annexation plans
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
Israeli security officials reportedly believe the Palestinian Authority is interested in gradually renewing security coordination after three and a half months of disconnect.
Ramallah shut down ties in response to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plan to annex large parts of the West Bank. Last month, Israel agreed to suspend the controversial move as part of its normalization agreement with the United Arab Emirates.
A security source told Kan news Wednesday that senior officials in the PA have indicated the desire to renew coordination through various messages, though no further details were provided.
The Israeli security establishment has long touted its coordination with the PA, crediting Ramallah for preventing numerous attacks on Israelis planned by Hamas and other terrorist actors in the West Bank. Defense officials have warned that halted ties could lead to rising violence, with more clashes between Israeli troops and Palestinians.
PA President Mahmoud Abbas had long threatened to cut security ties with Israel in response to the latter’s growing settler presence beyond the Green Line, but in May he finally followed through on the warning due to the annexation plan.
In addition to security cooperation between the Israeli military and Palestinian security forces, civil ties between Israel and the PA were also severed.
The Times of Israel Community.