West Bank fighters say Israel war on Gaza inspires more resistance | Occupied West Bank | Al Jazeera
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Al Jazeera speaks to Palestinian resistance fighters in the northern city of Tulkarem amid Israel's war on Gaza.
Palestinian resistance fighters in the Nur Shams refugee camp of Tulkarem say despite a series of deadly raids by the Israeli army, they are continuing to fight [Zena Al Tahhan/Al Jazeera]By Zena Al TahhanPublished On 12 Dec 202312 Dec 2023
Tulkarem, occupied West Bank - Tea, coffee, and assault rifles lie on the table outside Maysa's* front door in the Nur Shams refugee camp in the northern Israeli-occupied West Bank.
Every once in a while, she emerges with more trays of beverages and biscuits for the small group of young Palestinian fighters gathered in her alleyway under rows of fabric canopies covering the spaces between the camp homes.
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"These are our sons, our souls. All they want is a dignified life," says Maysa, a 40-something-year-old woman with a glowing face and warm smile.
"People all over the world, all countries, claim to be democratic and want to live free. What about our youth?
"They have no other option but the path of armed resistance," she says, standing behind the seated fighters. "There are no more lands left - the occupation took everything."
The fighters of the Nur Shams refugee camp are part of a wider phenomenon of re-emerging Palestinian armed resistance to decades of Israeli occupation in the West Bank.
Centred in the northern areas, it began in the Jenin refugee camp more than two years ago in June 2021 before spreading to Nablus, Jericho and Tulkarem among other places.
The development saw the rise of armed groups made up of young men aged 17 to 35, with the majority in their early 20s. With limited capabilities, the groups are focused on defence during Israeli military raids on the camps and attacking Israeli military checkpoints and illegal settlements.
The fighters say they have no choice but to fight Israel's military occupation [Zena Al Tahhan/Al Jazeera]
With his rifle strapped across his chest, Ziad*, a senior leader of the Tulkarem Brigades, is a man of few words. "It is our right to defend ourselves," the fighter, who is in his mid-20s, tells Al Jazeera.
Israel's ongoing war on the besieged Gaza Strip, where more than 18,200 Palestinians, including over 7,000 children, have been killed, only "encourages more men to join the resistance", he adds.
The latest Israeli assault began on October 7, when the Gaza-based Hamas armed resistance group launched a surprise operation on Israeli territory just outside the Strip, during which about 1,200 people were killed and some 200 taken captive.
Intensifying raids
Over the past two years, Israel severely intensified its deadly raids on the northern occupied West Bank and has killed dozens of fighters in drone attacks and targeted assassinations. This seriously hampered some of the resistance groups' ability to continue.
But armed resistance in Tulkarem remains, particularly in the Nur Shams refugee camp, one of two camps in the city, collectively home to over 34,500 Palestinians who were expelled by Zionist militias from their homes in Haifa, Jaffa and Caesarea during the 1948 Nakba.
Despite many deadly raids on both camps during the past two months, which saw dozens of civilian and fighter casualties, Israeli forces have been unable to enter Nur Shams on foot, deterred by obstacles and a significant number of improvised explosive devices.
Israeli forces caused heavy destruction during deadly raids on the Tulkarem refugee camp in November 2023 [Zena Al Tahhan/Al Jazeera]
While smaller, hand-thrown canisters are typically more common, the past two years have seen a spike in the production of larger canisters filled with flammable powder. These handmade bombs, used across the northern occupied West Bank, are intended to slow the army's raids down and can damage Israeli armoured vehicles, even rendering them inoperable.
"The occupation army thinks a thousand times before they enter Nur Shams," says journalist and Tulkarem resident Sami al-Sai.
"They do not enter it on foot. They bring in the bulldozers because the amount of explosive canisters in Nur Shams is unprecedented," he tells Al Jazeera.
During a 30-hour raid on both camps on October 19 and 20, the Israeli army killed 13 Palestinians, including five children, and injured 25 others.
"The army used unmanned drones - they killed seven people in one hit. The rest were killed by snipers, including some of the children," says al-Sai.
Growing support for armed resistance
Israeli army raids have more deeply impacted Tulkarem's other camp, which has sustained heavy damage to roads and infrastructure. Because the army has not been able to enter Nur Shams on foot, and there have been no attempts in several weeks, the fighters think a raid is imminent.
"We expect them to come at any moment. They might come while we are sitting here talking," says Ziad, adding that the "fighters are ready".
For Ziad and other fighters, the past three decades of Israel's intensifying military occupation and illegal settlements, as well as fruitless negotiations, means that "armed resistance is the only solution".
"What was taken by force can only be retrieved by force," says Ziad, quoting a well-known speech by late Egyptian president, Gamal Abdel Nasser. "It is useless to engage in negotiations," he adds.
Popular support for armed resistance has increased across the occupied West Bank over the past two years with many slain fighters emerging as symbols of resistance and thousands attending their funeral processions.
Sitting across from Ziad, is Laith*, another senior fighter in his late 20s.
"Despite the lack of capabilities, there is armed resistance in the West Bank that is hurting the occupation," says Laith. "Even if we are killed, 10 more will appear," he tells Al Jazeera.
The young men are well aware of their mortality, knowing they may soon be killed, he adds, but they are willing to give their lives for the cause. "Nothing happens overnight," says Laith. "It requires a lot of sacrifice and we have to work hard, so the next generation can pick up where we leave off and lead us to liberation."
Israeli and PA pressure
Two armed resistance groups were formed in Tulkarem in less than a year.
The majority of Palestinian fighters in the occupied West Bank are in their early 20s [Zena Al Tahhan/Al Jazeera]
In Nur Shams, fighters began to come together after 25-year-old Saif Abu Libdeh was killed by the Israeli army in Jenin on April 2, 2022.
Abu Libdeh had been laying the groundwork for the formation of an armed resistance group in the camp. He spent time in Jenin learning from the fighters there and appeared in press conferences and military parades with his face covered.
Following several large-scale Israeli army raids on Nablus, Jenin and Jericho in January and February this year, the Tulkarem Brigades-Saraya al-Quds armed group, which is loosely affiliated with the Gaza-based Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), began to emerge more prominently.
Months later, a second group was formed after the killing of fighter Ameer Abu Khadija on March 23, the Tulkarem Brigades-Fast Response is affiliated with the Fatah political party's armed wing, the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades.
One of the key factors contributing to the formation of the armed resistance groups over the past two years was fighters from across the Palestinian political spectrum coming together despite longstanding internal strife at the leadership level of their parties - including Hamas, Fatah, the PIJ, Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and others.
The groups' ability to unite younger fighters - who are affiliated with the traditional armed groups but often do not take orders from them - has made them a target for both the Israeli occupation and the Fatah-run Palestinian Authority (PA), which has pressured many fighters to accept bribes and amnesty in exchange for turning in their weapons.
Residents of the Nur Shams camp place obstacles at the entrances to the camp to block the Israeli army during raids, a practice used by fighters in other areas [Zena Al Tahhan/Al Jazeera]
On several occasions during funeral processions for slain fighters, PA security forces have turned violent. They have fired tear gas at crowds, carried out preemptive arrests of event participants, forcefully confiscated Hamas, PIJ and PFLP party flags, and fired live ammunition into the air.
The PA also cracked down on popular protests in the occupied West Bank on October 17 against Israel's bombing of the al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza, killing a 12-year-old Palestinian girl in Jenin.
Mehraj Shehadeh is the father of senior fighter Jihad, who was killed on November 6 in a targeted assassination along with three other fighters. Sitting in his living room in the Tulkarem refugee camp, Shehadeh says his son and others "sent a strong message to all the leaders - from [PA President] Mahmoud Abbas to Hamas's Ismail Haniyeh".
"They said: 'We are the ones who unite the people on the streets - not you.' They united people with their rifles and their blood," he told Al Jazeera. Despite working in the PA security services himself, Shehadeh does not agree with all PA policies, particularly against the fighters.
"If they had 30 bullets, they would split them between one another," he continues, describing the fighters as a "school".
"There were more than 17,000 people at their funeral. It was one of the largest funeral processions in Tulkarem's history."
*Names have been changed to protect the identities of residents and fighters.
Source: Al Jazeera
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There are two important points in the above paragraph. The first is that these young groups do affiliate with the traditional armed groups but OFTEN DO NOT TAKE ORDERS FROM THEM.
Second, they are targets for both Israel and the Palestinian Authority (PA). IMO the PA will never be accepted in Gaza or the West Bank by Palestinians.
Yesterday, Netanyahu rejected a proposal by the US that the PA govern Gaza after the war is over. I don't see the PA gaining that kind of power they are not wanted by Israel nor the Palestinians.
Al Jazeera reports anecdotal stories promoting Hamas talking points??? This is huge!
Did they report on what effect Hamas shooting Palestinians to keep from UN aid trucks has?
Nice of you to join in the conversation, as usual, you have nothing to offer but a poor try at sarcasm or perhaps you're trying to derail the article, whatever it is you will fail as usual.
Al Jazeera's reporting on groups that are formed and fighting Israel is anecdotal? Israel's not being able to enter some Palestinian camps is a lie?
Hamas and the aid trucks were in Gaza, Sean this article is about the West Bank. Do you know the difference?
If you would like to try and actually discuss the article give it an honest try, if not go peddle your bullshit somewhere else.
It always seems they dont.
Perhaps I should post a map with crayons to help them out.
I can't believe you you need this spelled out for you? Sadly, I made the mistake of overestimating the intelligence of the reader.
The comment is about the bias of the source. How did you miss that? The location of the story Al Jazeera ignored is irrelevant. It could have been in Zurich and the point would stand. What matters is what stories they choose to feed the gullible and which they don't.
Really embarrassing look for you that you can't understand that.
The best you can do is throw insults and no facts as usual.
Don't like the article attack the source, the tried and true of those that cannot disprove the story.
Oh, now that is funny coming from you. For one I doubt if you even read the article from your off topic comments and if you read the rules, which you didn't or don't care about rules (expressing your inner child) you are off topic.
I have a hard time viewing Al Jazeera as unbiased reporting. That being said, I also view the PA as the path forward. The fact that Netanyahu has rejected this is a bit of a problem. It is a bad idea for Israel to remain the permanent caretaker of Gaza, and the rest of the Arab world won't touch it. Really, the PA was the only defacto caretaker...
Even if part of this story is true, it's not good news.
Unbiased or not the story is true as it is carried in a other media. IMO, there is no way that the PA and Abbas will be accepted by Gaza and Netanyahu flat told the US yesterday after we proposed the PA to govern Gaza that there is no way he will ever accept the PA in Gaza, the relationship between the US and Israel is getting more strained by the day.
I don't think a 2 state solution will ever work long term. The only way to resolve the issues between these groups is to integrate them. Until both sides are willing to embrace each other as brothers there can only be violence and pain.
I wonder how many more millenniums they'll need for that?
It doesn't look to be any time soon anyway.
too much money changing hands for that to happen now...
It cannot be a surprise to anyone that the West Bank would see ramifications from what is happening in Gaza.
When they do not know the West Bank from Gaza it's amazing they can complete a lucid comment, which to date they have proved they can't.
Many years ago, when I was still in Canada, Al Jazeera was banned in Canada, but I believe that they allow the Arabic language version now. Al Jazeera is banned by a number of countries - just google that and you will see what I mean. I would never rely on a source that has been banned by both western and eastern and even Middle East nations. If other sources copy Al Jazeera's reports, I would disregard them as well. It is a journalistic trick to plant some truth in their stories while reporting biased falsehoods in order to fool readers that the whole story could be true.
Articles about this have been appearing for a year in the WSJ, Reuters, Washington Post, PBS etc etc.
If you believe that this article is not factual you should disprove it, Buzz.
Disprove it? I won't even bother reading it. If you can post a link to an article about the issue that is NOT a copy of the Al Jazeera article that is published by npr, CTV (Canada Television News), Canada Global News, ABC News or CBS News, Jerusalem Post or Jewish Telegraph Agency (JTA) all of which are not blocked here I will be happy to read it. This is not a shot at you, Kavika, it's just that I refuse to waste even 1 second of my life reading something published by Al Jazeera.
I listed some of the media that have or are currently carrying this story.
It's you choice, Buzz.
I appreciate your telling me to use the sources I'm unable to open. Forget about it. l don't give a shit anymore.
The whole article is simply Al Jazeera propaganda.
The West Banks's resistance fighters are just an extension of the Hamas killers and need to be dealt with in the same way.
Can you disprove it, Greg or is this another of your pulling your comment out of your nether regions and doing a hit and run?
.
While it is good that all of the Palestinian militias in the West Bank have united; and I fully support their right to armed resistance to save what land they have left; it is far too little, and far too late.
Israel has already carved up the West Bank to the point where it can no longer be a viable part of any future Palestinian state. Israel will not remove 700,000 plus illegal settlers; nor will it renounce it's annexation of eastern Jerusalem. There will be no land bridge created between the West Bank and Gaza to allow for free travel and commerce between the two. (A strong reason that Bibi refuses to let the PA take over control of Gaza. Israel would have to allow PA security and officials back into Gaza. Hamas "removed (killed off) all of the PA in Gaza when they took control in 2006. They would have to allow PA officials and security free movement between the two if they gave the PA control.) Bibi wants the Palestinians divided geographically, economically, and politically.
It is only a matter of time before Israel takes what land it wants in the West Bank and forces the Palestinians into whatever is left. It doesn't help that most of the world can't tell the difference between the East Jerusalem, West Bank, and Gaza. Nor do they know the differences between the PA (lap dog of Israel and US); Hamas (Iran backed), Hezbollah (Iran backed), and all of the subset militias. They think all Palestinians are the same. Hell they think all Arabs are the same- which is why Israel is pushing their Egypt, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon are Palestine BS plan. They haven't bothered to research religious differences; ethnicity differences; and even clan/tribal differences (Arab clans/tribes can hold grudges against each other for 100's of years. Something Sykes/Picot never took into account.).
Hopefully this new Palestinian united militia movement will find it's way over to Gaza. For far too long Palestinians have been divided and killing each other- which is the way Israel wants it.
The political right in Israel is going to do in this case what they always do. Try to plow through it. This has been going on for decades there. And realistically, there's no end in sight. So there will be war, violence, more deaths. It's just a never ending problem.
You'll need to clarify your comment. Are you saying you want the new militia to join Hamas in Gaza to fight against Israel?
I am saying I want the new militia to absorb the Hamas fighters (and the PA security ) so that Palestinians will stop killing Palestinians and actually form a cohesive people for a change. If anyone thinks that Hamas didn't kill off the PA in the West Bank; as well as every other political opponent between 2006 and 2007 I have news for them. I have first hand knowledge of PA officials and security that Hamas killed off.
As for fighting against Israel. I have no problem with Palestinians defending themselves or what little land they have left against Israel. Israel isn't going to leave Gaza nor the West Bank unless they are severely kicked in the teeth. It is already too late for the West Bank. Gaza is going to be in shambles once Israel is done with it. Chances are there will be some type of puppet government installed by the Israelis.
Hamas isn't going to go away. It will regrow from the ashes, rubble, and hatred of those that are still living through some of the worst conditions on the planet. I want their leadership left devoid of fighters. Without them they have no power.
It is going to take a unified Palestinian people to jettison the puppet government and actually try to rebuild. Hopefully there are some real leaders among the new coalition of militias that will know how to do more than just fight. That care more about their people than just fighting Israel in a war they cannot win.
I have been listening to Al Jazeera for a couple months to try and get a different perspective on the war. Needless to say it is quite different than what you might hear in many other news outlets. Interesting but to be taken with a grain of salt (as are the other news outlets). That being said I don't think it is a stretch that the war will inspire some more resistance, especially if the people in the West Bank is getting their news from Al Jazeera. Remember they are not hearing what we are hearing and what they are listening to is extremely one sided most of the time. So what is Israel too do? Stop defending themselves because people in the West Bank and Gaza are trained to hate Israel from a very young age and the spin on the war they are hearing only reinforces what they are being taught? If that is the case than propaganda wins. Or try and put a stop to their people constantly living in fear? What they were doing obviously didn't work. It is a shitty choice and one I am glad I don't have to make. I will let them make the decision they feel is in the best interest of their people.
The Palestinians and Bedouins in the West Bank are getting their news first hand, thanks to the IDF and settlers and that is one of the main reasons that the younger Palestinians are forming their own groups, they do not trust the PA nor do they take orders from Hamas.
The attacks by the IDF Settlers in the WB are simply creating more terrorists that Israel will have to add to the list already in place.
Which could lead to an internal civil war of sorts.
Yes, it could as happened before between Hamas and the PA when Hamas drove the PA out of Gaza.
I heard an interesting interview on NPR yesterday. It was with Eyal Waldman, who was a former Israeli army officer serving in the elite the Golani Brigade. He became a Tech giant in California were his daughter Danielle was born. He created a design center in Gaza, donated $360,000 (£286,200) to a hospital there, and created jobs for Palestinians both in the Gaza and the West Bank. He has advocated for a two nation solution.
On Oct 7, his daughter and her fiancé where murdered fleeing the music fest. The reporter asked if he was now sorry about try to help Palestinians. He said no, "I think we need to do everything we can to make this place the best place to live in. And we need to stop killing each other and find a way to live together. I have been working for two-and-half decades trying to make peace." "We need to change leadership on both sides. And then I hope in two to four years we'll be able to do peace and build two states for the two people and be able to live together next to each other," he says.
Then he said, "Anyone that was responsible, anyone that was associated with what happened on 7 October 2023, will be eliminated. And we will take care of that".
"We know exactly who came, who raped, who butchered. We have videos, we have their cell phone numbers. We know who they are. We can eliminate them. And I think we can eliminate Hamas."
Now, I not sure that Israel can eliminate Hamas or Hezbollah, and I don't see a viable way ahead to a two state solution. The point is, a man like this, who has worked and invested in Palestinians, and want's a two state solution has been hardened to the degree that the destruction of Gaza is necessary to kill the butchers of 7 Oct. I think that this will be a major turning point in even the most liberal, peace loving Israeli.
It's hard to create a two state solution when you see a pervasive, existential threat to your family and your nation.
I agree I don't believe that Israel can eliminate Hamas or Hezbollah. As for Mr. Waldman's decision, it is human nature to want vengeance or revenge for the killers of your family, it can become the driving force in your life, without a doubt but you extract that revenge and then what the family/friends of those you killed seek revenge and on and on and on. It results in what is happening today between the Israelis and Palestinians. How do you end it, I don't have a good answer and the only thing that seems possible although distant is the two-state solution but to even start on that the leaderships of Hamas/Palestine/Hezbollah/Israel has to be changed and then the people on both sides have to want it and drive out the evil elements on their side. Is that possible, I simply don't know but to continue on the current way is nothing more than another 100 years of war/terrorism and grief.
BTW, the elite Golani Brigade suffered a large number of KIA today I believe it was nine including their commander in an ambush by Hamas.
civilian casualties are too great of a recruiting tool.
Sadly, that is true.
Why else would Hamas terrorists ensure civilian casualties?