|
Trending Topics
|
Hamas Working "Nonstop" to Destabilize West Bank
(Jerusalem Post) Lahav Harkov - Israel Security Agency Director Nadav Argaman told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee Tuesday that in the first five months of 2016, the ISA prevented 11 suicide bombings, 10 kidnappings and over 60 attempted shootings, most of which were planned by Hamas. "Hamas makes nonstop attempts to undermine stability in the West Bank," he said. Argaman said security forces have focused on "attackers and their immediate surroundings, while protecting the fabric of life of the general Palestinian population....All these factors created a sense in the Palestinian public that there is no reason to continue the escalation." He noted that Palestinians in the West Bank think President Mahmoud Abbas will not last much longer, and the political competition within Fatah has led senior PA officials to make "warlike declarations" to try to become more popular. In Gaza, the calm is misleading because there is increased socioeconomic distress and Islamic State elements are challenging Hamas.