Three Dead in Nablus: Israeli Raid on Fatah Group Does Not Bode Well

by Daniel J Gerstle · 2009-12-26 08:20:00 UTC
Topics:

An Israeli security raid in the West Bank today resulted in three killed, according to the Associated Press. The New York Times reports others killed in similar clashes.

The dead in Nablus were associated with the leading Fatah political party. Although Israeli security raids have been going on for years, particularly in Nablus, the event is somewhat unusual in that recently Fatah has been seen as a moderate organization willing to talk peace with Israel and it has also been seen as the party most likely to do well in a coming round of elections.

Nablus is a city in the north lobe of Palestine's West Bank. Although it is a pre-dominantly Palestinian Arab City deep inside the jurisdiction of the Palestinian Authority there are a number of large, fortress-defended Jewish settlements just outside the city. The Israeli Army searches every car going in and out of the city and scrutinizes most, if not all travelers.

If Israel wished to investigate a security issue here, theoretically they would involve the Fatah Party-led Palestinian Authority. Going alone, they draw the ire of Palestinian witnesses. Kids tend to throw rocks. Now that the raid led to the killing of locals, even if they are only rumored to have been in Fatah, it does not bode well for stability.

The event could lead to greater tension between Israel and the Palestinian ruling party at a delicate time. This is a breaking news, so follow the story on the Associated Press news wire.

[Photo: Similar Israeli security action in Nablus in 2006, Michael Ramallah]

Daniel J Gerstle is a journalist, human rights researcher, and humanitarian aid consultant. He is Editor and Chief Correspondent for HELO: The Crisis Story Magazine.
PREVIOUS STORY:
Afghan Soldiers Smoking Pot is Not News
NEXT STORY:
A letter from Bettina Siegel, "Pink Slime" petition creator

COMMENTS (0)

    Comment Policy

    · All fields are required to comment.

    [X]

    Comments on Change.org are meant for further exploration and evaluation of the campaign on Change.org. To that end, we welcome constructive comments. However, we reserve the right to delete comments which, as determined solely in our discretion: (1) are offensive, abusive, or off-topic; (2) include content solely intended to personally attack the campaign creator, (3) are designed to subvert or hijack comment threads rather than contribute to them; and/or (4) violate our terms of service and/or privacy policy. Repeat offenders may be permanently removed from the site at our discretion. Please also be advised that: (A) we do not actively curate and/or monitor in any manner whatsoever the comments made on the Change.org platform, and (B) the creator of each campaign on Change.org may remove any comment at her/his/its discretion.