(Ha'aretz) Amos Harel - According to IDF sources, there has been a distinct deterioration in the security situation in the West Bank due to the growing involvement of Fatah members - including some who serve in the PA security services - in attacks on Israelis. A senior General Staff officer said Thursday that Fatah and Hamas had recently switched roles. Fatah is now vying with Islamic Jihad as the leading perpetrator of attacks in recent weeks. IDF sources said the main reason for Fatah's growing involvement in attacks was its operatives' fear that the new Hamas-led government would not be able to continue paying the approximately 70,000 members of the PA security services, most of whom are Fatah personnel. Perpetrating attacks against Israel enables these operatives to be paid instead by either Islamic Jihad's headquarters in Damascus or Hizballah in Beirut. "We're on a path toward confrontation with the Palestinians," the senior officer concluded.
2006-03-17 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive