Thousands of Palestinians have taken to streets across the occupied West Bank to express their resentment over a so-called Israeli-Palestinian "security summit" organized by the White House in Jordan after the Israeli military's deadly raid in Nablus.
The protesters poured onto streets in Dheisheh refugee camp, located just south of Bethlehem, in the early hours of Sunday to denounce the meeting of senior officials from Israel, the Palestinian Authority (PA), the United States, Jordan, and Egypt in the Jordanian resort city of Aqaba, which began later in the day.
تغطية صحفية: مسيرة في مخيم الدهيشة ببيت لحم رفضاً لمؤتمر العقبة الأمني. pic.twitter.com/nviWmrAg0L
— وكالة شهاب للأنباء (@ShehabAgency) February 25, 2023
A similar demonstration was also held at the Jenin refugee camp in the northern West Bank, where participants chanted slogans in condemnation of the Aqaba.
Representatives of Palestinian resistance groups, who were present in the Jenin rally, censured the Palestinian Authority’s decision to participate in the US-organized security summit, describing it as an event doomed to abject failure.
#شاهد | مسيرة حاشدة انطلقت من مخيم #جنين تجاه المدينة؛ رفضاً لقمة العقبة pic.twitter.com/A0yFWlNAbc
— وكالة شهاب للأنباء (@ShehabAgency) February 25, 2023
They said in a joint statement that PA authorities were once again lured into participation in such meetings, which are organized by the White House and under its close supervision.
“The Palestinian Authority institutions would better work towards national unity and fortification of the resistance front. The forthcoming [Aqaba] meeting is meant to pave the way for further expansion of illegal settlements and massacre of Palestinians at the hands of Zionists,” the statement read.
The resistance groups also stated that the Aqaba summit would be of no benefit to the Palestinian nation, but would rather serve Israel’s interests.
‘A threat to Palestinians’ unity’
A senior official with the Gaza-based Hamas resistance movement said the purpose of the Aqaba meeting is to sow seeds of division among Palestinians and to suppress resistance factions in the West Bank.
“While the summit is allegedly aimed at de-escalating tensions and curbing violence across the Palestinian territories, its main purpose is to implement the US security plan, annihilate resistance groups by Palestinians themselves and kill off Palestinians’ hopes for freedom and independence,” Basem Naim, head of the international relations department at Hamas, said.
“We notify the Palestinian Authority officials that all previous US security plans to crush the Palestinian nation’s willpower and resistance front, and wreck their struggle for liberation from the Israeli occupation have failed,” Naim said.
“Even though your political initiatives and reliance on foreign forces have failed to attain the national goals of Palestinians, you still insist on standing on the wrong side of history and acting as tools in the hands of Zionist occupiers,” the senior Hamas official addressed PA authorities.
Tensions have been rising across the occupied West Bank as Israeli forces launch raids on a daily basis under the pretext of detaining what the regime calls “wanted” Palestinians. The raids usually lead to deadly attacks against residents.
Over the past months, Israel has ramped up attacks on Palestinian towns and cities throughout the occupied territories. As a result of these attacks, dozens of Palestinians have lost their lives and many others have been arrested.
On Wednesday, widespread confrontations broke out in Nablus. The Israeli forces blocked off all entrances to the city before surrounding a home with two high-profile Palestinian resistance fighters, identified as Hossam Isleem and Mohammad Abdulghani.
Following the raid, at least 11 Palestinians, including the two resistance fighters, were killed. Another 102 people were also injured – 82 hit by live ammunition, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.
Moreover, on January 26, Israeli forces raided the city of Jenin and its neighboring refugee camp in the north of the occupied West Bank, killing ten Palestinians in another deadly raid in years.
The United Nations marked 2022 as the deadliest year for Palestinians in the West Bank in 16 years.
Israeli forces killed at least 171 Palestinians in the West Bank and occupied East al-Quds last year, including more than 30 children. At least 9,000 others were also injured.