What is Israel’s end game with the Palestinian Authority?
At dawn on December 8, the sound of gunshots rang out above al-Manara Square, the central roundabout in Ramallah in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
Dozens of Israeli armoured vehicles had raided the area, less than a kilometre (0.6 miles) away from the Palestinian Authority’s (PA’s) headquarters to go into a print shop and shut it down. They plastered a poster outside that read: “This shop supports terrorism.”
The PA keeps a tight noose on any armed resistance in Ramallah, so it was a surprise when the raid was met with live ammunition by Palestinian fighters, leading to an exchange of fire.
The last exchange of fire at al-Manara Square had been in 2006, according to local journalists.
Israeli forces raided Ramallah again over the next two days, and analysts told Al Jazeera that the raids, which happen daily in the occupied West Bank, have taken greater significance recently.
“It is a show of power and a provocation to the PA and the people to instil fear,” Ismat Mansour, a Ramallah-based analyst, told Al Jazeera.
“If we tie these actions with [Israeli Prime Minister] Netanyahu and [Finance Minister Bezalel] Smotrich’s recent statements, which are full of incitement and animosity against the PA, … we see that their goal is to embarrass the PA and to weaken it even more.
“There is no security pretext for raiding Ramallah and carrying out an exchange of fire in the centre of al-Manara, metres away from the Muqataa [PA headquarters] only to close a print shop.”
Netanyahu charged on Monday that the PA aims to “destroy Israel in stages” although it is not clear what he was basing the accusation on.
“The difference between Hamas and the PA is only that Hamas wants to destroy us here and now – the PA wants to do it in stages,” he said in a closed-door meeting of the Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, according to Israeli media.
Post-war phase
With the Israeli war on Gaza extending into its third month, Israeli, American and other foreign officials have been publicly discussing what the political leadership in the strip will look like after the war, based on the premise that Israel will destroy Hamas.
In recent weeks, United States officials suggested the PA rule over the Gaza Strip, but many observers do not think that is likely and top Israeli officials have opposed the idea.
US President Joe Biden’s administration said it does not support an indefinite Israeli military presence in the territory, and it opposes downsizing Gaza or displacing its population.
