Reports: Israel hopes Biden will help restore security coordination with Palestinian Authority

The Israeli security apparatus hopes that the election of Joe Biden as president of the United States will help Tel Aviv restore security coordination with the Palestinian Authority, the Maariv newspaper reported yesterday.

The paper quoted senior officials in the Israeli security apparatus as saying that “to this day there is no security coordination between the Palestinian security services and the Israeli army, the Civil Administration and the Shin Bet,” adding that Israel does not expect a dramatic change in the PA’s policy on this issue.

However, according to the paper, it is estimated that when Biden enters office, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas will agree to receiving tax revenues from Israel and will resume security coordination.

“In all cases, the security apparatus does not expect a dramatic change and believes the security situation will gradually stabilize, and only after the resumption of relations between the United States and the Palestinian Authority,” it added.

Meanwhile, Israel Hayom reported that Tel Aviv is concerned about the resumption of international pressure on it to implement concessions for the Palestinians.

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The paper quoted Israeli sources as saying that “such an American policy would delay efforts to persuade moderate Sunni countries to make their relations with Israel public”.

“The Israeli security apparatus agrees on the importance of alliance agreements and normalization of relations with the Gulf states,” the paper said, adding that the Israeli political leadership considers these agreements to have led to a major strategic change in the region, by removing Arab countries’ requirement to resolve the Palestinian issue in return for normalising ties with Tel Aviv.

Abbas ended security coordination with Israel after the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced a plan to annex large areas in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem and the Jordan Valley.