In a rare move, Palestinian forces stop IDF from entering Jenin

Palestinian security forces reportedly blocked Israeli troops as they attempted to enter the city of Jenin in the northern occupied West Bank on Sunday, and succeeded in forcing them to leave.

A video that went viral on Facebook purported to show Palestinian officers standing in front of Israeli military vehicles attempting to drive into Jenin. The footage also shows Palestinian officers shouting and cocking their guns, before Israeli soldiers eventually retreated.

An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma’an News Agency they were looking into the case.

The reports represented a rare standoff between Palestinian and Israeli security forces, as the Palestinian Authority (PA) regularly allows Israeli forces to enter PA-controlled areas in the West Bank to conduct daily detention raids and other military operations, in contravention of the Oslo accords.

Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas, even at times of strained relationship between the two states, have said:

Security cooperation is sacred and it will continue despite the political differences

In recent months, both Palestinian and Israeli-led raids have targeted Jenin in particular. Palestinian factions have repeatedly accused the Fatah-dominated PA of “escalating security collaboration” with Israeli authorities through politically-motivated arrests and “adopting a revolving door policy” funneling Palestinians from PA jails into Israeli prisons.