The Involvement Of Palestinian Authority Security Forces In Terror Attacks Against Israel

Over recent years, many members of the Palestinian Authority (PA) security forces have turned their weapons on the Israeli security forces and even initiated shooting attacks against Israelis. After their death in these attacks, they have frequently been revealed to belong both to the PA security forces and to Palestinian terror organizations such as the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades [1] – the military wing of Fatah, the political party led by PA President Mahmoud 'Abbas – or independent groups such as the Jenin Brigade and Lion's Den in Nablus.

The terrorist affiliations of PA security forces members who carry out attacks is often evident on social media, whereas PA spokespersons and Palestinian media outlets deliberately ignore their terrorist activity, occasionally even claiming that they were murdered by Israel in cold blood. This situation reflects the duality that exists within the PA, which on the one hand uses its security agencies to counter the terrorist militias and their operatives, and on the other hand refuses to condemn terrorist attacks and even encourages them by praising the terrorists and their actions.[2] The PA's support for terrorism is also reflected by the fact that many armed and uniformed PA security officers visit the mourning tents of slain terrorists, including terrorists who were not  affiliated with the PA's security forces. This is in addition to the fact that, since the day of its founding, the PA has been paying benefits to prisoners and released prisoners convicted of terrorism against Israel, to terrorists who were wounded in the course of attacks on Israelis and to the families of terrorists killed in the course of such action – despite international pressure to stop these payments.[3]

 
Post on Fatah-affiliated X account: "Martyrs of the Palestinian security forces." Source: Twitter.com/kalidalhsan, January 17, 2024.

This report provides examples of terror attacks in which PA security officers were involved, as well as expressions of condolences by PA security officers and officials, including visits to mourning tents for their comrades and other slain terrorists.

Fatah Video From May 2022 Praises PA Security Officers Involved In Terrorist Attacks

On May 25, 2022, the Fatah movement published a video titled "Security Officers by Day, Fida'in (self-sacrificing fighters) by Night" praising PA security officers who were involved in terrorist attacks. The video glorifies the following terrorists:

• Muhammad Al-Tubasi, member of the military wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) who was arrested by Israeli security forces in Jenin on May 24, 2022.

• Daoud Al-Zubeidi, a former PA security forces officer and the brother of prominent terrorist Zakariya Al-Zubeidi, who died of injuries sustained in a May 13, 2022 firefight with Israeli forces in Jenin.

• Fathi Hazem, a former senior PA security forces officer who is also the father of Ra'ad Hazem, who murdered three Israeli civilians in an April 7, 2022 terror shooting in Tel Aviv.

• Adham Aliwi and Taysir Issa, two officers from the PA's military intelligence agency who were killed in a firefight with Israeli forces on June 10, 2021.[4]

Shooting Attacks Carried Out By PA Security Officers

Below are several examples of PA security forces members who turned their weapons against Israelis:

PA National Security Officer Opens Fire On Israeli Bus

On March 28, 2024 Abu Rida Al-Sa'adi, a member of the Palestinian National Security Forces (PNSF) from Jenin, opened fire on an Israeli bus on Route 90 just north of Jericho, injuring three Israeli civilians. After a three-day manhunt, Al-Sa'adi turned himself in to Israeli forces on March 31.[5] On his social media pages, Al-Sa'adi has shared many posts praising terrorists, and particularly those who were also members of the PA's security agencies, including Ashraf Ibrahim, a Palestinian General Intelligence Service (GIS) officer who was killed in a firefight with Israeli forces in May 2023; Amir Abu Khadijah, a former member of the Palestinian Presidential Guard who belonged to the Tulkarm Brigade terror cell and was killed by Israeli forces in March 2023, and Ziyad Al-Zar'ini, a former PA customs agent who belonged to Fatah's Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade military wing and was killed in a firefight with Israeli forces in March 2023.[6]

Abu Rida Al-Sa'adi (left) next to Ziyad Al-Zar'ini. Source: Instagram.com/abo_rida_sadi, March 8, 2024.

Facebook post by Al-Sa'adi praising former PA customs agent Ziyad Al-Zar'ini, killed in a clash with Israeli forces in March 2023. The caption reads: "May Allah have mercy on you, oh lion." Source: Facebook.com/anas056, March 7, 2023.

In a Facebook post Al-Sa'adi shared on March 28, the day he carried out the attack, he wrote in praise of jihad and martyrdom: "Those who fight steadfastly for the sake of Allah will be rewarded with great victory. Allah's help will surely come, for Allah promised victory for His servants… Continue to pray and supplicate for the sake of the jihad fighters… Oh living and existing Allah, awaken the conscience of the Muslims, make us Your servants and do not replace us [with others]. Grant us happiness, victory and martyrdom."[7]

 
Pro-terrorism posts shared by Al-Sa'adi on social media. The post on the left reads: "Jenin fights to the death." Source: Facebook.com/anas056, August 16, 2021; Tiktok.com/@jenin565, May 3, 2022.

Terror Shooting By PA Police Officer

On February 29, 2024, PA police officer Muhammad Manasra carried out a shooting attack at a gas station near the Israeli West Bank settlement of Eli, killing two Israeli civilians.[8] Fatah's Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades military wing announced later on the same day that the "hero" Manasra, who was killed while carrying out this "heroic operation," was a member of the Brigades.[9]

Left: Manasra, a PA police officer (Facebook.com/ramallahmixps, February 29, 2024). Right: The same photo of Manasra appears in an Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades poster praising him for the February 29, 2024 terror attack (T.me/kataebaqsapalestine, February 29, 2024).

Former PA Presidential Guardsman Opens Fire On Israeli Minibus

On March 22, 2024 former Palestinian Presidential Guardsman Mujahed Barakat Mansour opened fire against an Israeli minibus near the Israeli West Bank settlements of Dolev and Talmon, near Ramallah.[10] Following a manhunt he was killed in a firefight with Israeli forces several hours later.

The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades announced that Mansour had belonged to them,[11] and shared a poster on their Telegram channel praising him for the "heroic shooting operation in Ramallah."[12] However, the PA's news agency Wafa reported that Mansour was a "youth" killed by Israel, and that Israeli media outlets "claimed" he had carried out a terror attack.[13]

Poster shared on the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades' Telegram channel praising "the martyr and warrior" Mujahed Barakat Mansour. Source: T.me/nedalps, March 22, 2024.

Poster shared by Fatah-affiliated X account referring to Mansour as the "Lion of Ramallah." Source: Twitter.com/FatahPal65, March 22, 2024.

Two Palestinian Civil Defense Officers Carry Out Shooting Attack

On October 28, 2022, two officers from the PA's Civil Defense apparatus, 'Imad Abu Rashid and Ramzi Zabara, opened fire at an Israeli military outpost near Nablus. Israeli soldiers returned fire, killing the two men.[14] Palestinian presidential spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh called the death of the two men a "crime" carried out by Israel as part of its "policy of genocide" against the Palestinians, while ignoring the fact that they had carried out the shooting.[15]

The Fatah-affiliated Fida'in X account shared the photos, names, and ranks of Abu Rashid and Zabara, with a comment that acknowledged their dual affiliation: "In the mornings [they were officers of] the Palestinian security forces, and in the evenings they were two heroes of the clashes [with Israel]."[16]

The October 29, 2022 tweet by the Fatah-affiliated Fida'in X account

Palestinian Security Officers Killed In Firefights With Israeli Forces Left Wills Praising Martyrdom And Jihad

Several Palestinian security officers who carried out terror attacks left wills emphasizing their dedication to jihad and martyrdom for the sake of Allah.

For instance, Ahmad 'Abed, a Palestinian Preventive Security officer who was killed on September 14, 2022 in a firefight with Israeli forces in Jenin, wrote in his will that he chose to die as a martyr for the sake of Allah because this is the loftiest goal and the best way to become close to Allah and uplift Islam. He also requested that his family rejoice in his death as a martyr and that his friends cling to their weapons and to jihad against the Israeli enemy.[17]

He wrote: "I write this last will in anticipation of my death as a martyr for the sake of Allah, for martyrdom is the best way to draw close to Allah, and no ideal can compare to it. By Allah, I have chosen this path in order to exalt and elevate monotheism [i.e., Islam], in order to attain martyrdom for the sake of Allah, and so that our blood should count as [blood spilled] for the sake of this noble faith…

"Allah has commanded us to wage jihad for His sake, and if we jihad fighters do not do so, who will?...

"My friends and loved ones, do not abandon the path of jihad, for every nation that neglected jihad was humiliated. Do not lay down your guns, which will bring you honor and supremacy. Never tarry [in waging] jihad and do not withdraw in the face of the enemy. Rather, be the first to reach the arenas of jihad and struggle, and do not let the tricks of the plotters and the words of the hypocrites hurt you, for jihad will lead to victory and bring the believers victory and martyrdom.

"Finally, my brothers, we must understand that the Palestinian cause is not a political one, nor is it [associated with] any particular organization. It is an ideological and religious cause, for we are soldiers of Allah fighting the enemies of Allah in order to elevate [the Islamic declaration of faith]: There is no god but Allah and Muhammad is His Messenger."[18]

 
Ahmad 'Abed's will. Source: Facebook.com/safapscom, September 14, 2022. The post has since been deleted.

In another example, Palestinian Policeman Hamdi Abu Dayah, who was killed in Halhul after opening fire at Israeli soldiers on January 17, 2023,[19] also left a will – written three months earlier in October 2022 – stating: "I have made a decision… to sow great death among the Zionists, while remaining alive – with strength that Allah will grant me – in order to inflict continued damage on the enemy." [22] He went on to say: "O enemies… I am your fate. Every day, a lone wolf comes out to [fight] you, an orphan [i.e., non-affiliated fighter] who feasts upon your flesh and crushes your bones… You have a trigger that you squeeze and that is leading you to Hell through the gate of death which we open for you, [while] our trigger takes us to the Gardens [of Paradise], where there are things even greater than Jaffa oranges and Galilee apples."[21]

Hamdi Abu Dayah's will. Source: Twitter.com/akad2022, January 17, 2023.

Abu Dayah was a member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), and an announcement about his death published by the group acknowledged him as one of the group's fida'i (self-sacrificing) fighters. PFLP Deputy Secretary-General Jamil Mazhar called his family and personally expressed his condolences.[22] For its part, the PA denied Abu Dayah's involvement in a terror attack, and then-PA Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh called his death an "execution," demanding that the United Nations intervene in order to stop Israel's "murder operations."[23]

Hamdi Abu Dayah, on the left, wearing PFLP regalia. Source: Abu Dayah's Facebook page (Facebook.com/profile.php?id=100004559626345), September 6, 2014.

On his Facebook page, Abu Dayah had shared several posts praising "lone wolf" terror attacks. For instance, on November 15, 2022 he wrote: "The foundations of the occupied homeland [i.e. Palestine] will be completed only through the success of the orphan [i.e. lone] wolves, who perform great actions by means of their sacrifice. Mercy and praise upon the martyrs who sow death among the enemies without [even] having a gun[24]…"[25]

Palestinian Security Forces Members Who Also Belong To Armed Terrorist Militias Which The PA Operates Against, Such As Lions' Den

In addition to the individual terrorist attacks perpetrated by members of the Palestinian security forces, there has been an increase in cases of PA security forces members who also join independent terrorist militias, such as the Jenin Brigades or the Nablus-based Lions' Den. These relatively new groups are comprised of armed operatives from various Palestinian factions and are responsible for numerous terrorist attacks. Many members of the PA security forces belong to these terrorist militias despite the fact that the PA actually acts to restrain these militias' activities due to their involvement in terrorism and their challenge to PA rule.

One example is Ziyad Al-Zar'ini, a PA customs officer who was fired and arrested due to his activities in the Jenin Brigades and his involvement in establishing a similar terrorist militia in Nablus.[26] Al-Zar'ini, who was also a member of Fatah's Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades military wing, was killed in Jenin on March 7, 2023 along with five other terrorists from Fatah, Hamas, and the PIJ in a firefight with Israeli security forces.[27] His death was reported by both the PA customs police and the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades.[28]

Obituary for Ziyad Al-Zar'ini posted by the commander of the PA customs police, Major General Iyad Barakat (Source: Facebook.com/customspoliceps, March 7, 2023)

Ziyad Al-Zar'ini was also a member of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades. Source: T.me/jeninqassam, March 7, 2023.

A Lion's Den and PFLP operative named Tamer Al-Kilani, who was killed by roadside bomb in Nablus on October 23, 2022, had previously served with the PA Presidential Guard, and according to reports, had undergone training in Jordan in this framework.[29]

Several members of the PA security agencies have in fact played key roles in terrorist militias, and some turned themselves in to Palestinian security services after they were designated as wanted by Israel. For example, in April 2023 'Uday Al-Azizi, who, according to Fatah-affiliated social media accounts, was an officer in the NSF and the commander of the Lions' Den militia, turned himself in to the NSF for fear of being killed by Israel.[30] According to the report in the Saudi daily Al-Sharq Al-Awsat, his surrender "was coordinated with his commanders."[31] Similarly, in June 2023, the Lions' Den deputy commander Khaled Toubayleh, who had also been an officer in the NSF, surrendered to the PA.[32]

Furthermore, an August 2, 2023 Al-Arabi Al-Jadid report stated that the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades spokesman in the Jenin refugee camp, Diaa Abu Wa'ed (also known as Abu Mujahed), was arrested by PA security forces, in which he was reportedly an officer.[33]

Members Of PA Security Forces Perpetrate Terrorist Attacks As Fatah Military Wing Operatives

Another related phenomenon is the terrorist activity of PA security officers in the framework of their membership in the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades terrorist organization, which is the military wing of the Fatah movement headed by PA President Mahmoud 'Abbas. An example is 'Izz Al-Din Salahat, who was killed in Jenin on January 26, 2023, alongside other terrorists, during a firefight with Israeli security forces.[34] Like several of those mentioned above (Ziyad Al-Zar'ini, Muhammad Manasra, and Mujahed Barakat Mansour) and others, Salahat belonged to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades in addition to being a member of the PA Police Force. Accordingly, eulogies for Salahat were posted both on the PA Police Force Facebook page and on Telegram channels affiliated with the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades. The former eulogy was posted on behalf of PA Police Commissioner General Yousef Al-Helou and referred to Salahat as a PA policeman, whereas the latter eulogies described him as a Brigades operative.[35]

Social media accounts affiliated with the Fatah movement lauded Salahat's deeds as both a policeman in the PA and a member of the movement's military wing. The Fida'in Twitter account, for example, posted a photograph in which Salahat is wearing an Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades headband, with the caption, "The martyr the brave fighter 'Izz Al-Din Salahat, one of the fighters of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, the military wing of the Fatah movement, is an officer in the Palestinian Police."[36]

Obituary for PA policeman 'Izz Al-Din Salahat, posted by the PA Police Commissioner. Source: Facebook.com/Palestinianpolice1, January 26, 2023.

Post on the Fatah-affiliated Fida'in Twitter account. Source: Twitter.com/palestfateh1965, January 26, 2023. This account has since been shut down.

Another prominent example is GIS officer Ashraf Ibrahim, who was killed in Jenin in a May 29, 2023 firefight with Israeli forces.[37] According to a statement released by the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, Ibrahim was one of the group's fighters.[38] At his funeral – at the end of which a wreath was laid on his grave by the head of GIS Majed Faraj – his body was wrapped in both the flag of the GIS and that of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades.[39]

The body of Ashraf Ibrahim wrapped in the flags of the GIS and the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades. The photograph was later deleted from the official PA news agency website. Source: Wafa.ps, May 29, 2023.

There are additional recent examples of PA security officers who were also members of Fatah's Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades. These include:

• Muhammad Abu 'Aid, who was killed in Jenin on October 22, 2023 in an Israeli airstrike on the Al-Ansari Mosque, which was being used as a terror stronghold. Abu 'Aid had been a member of the PA's Equipment and Supply agency.[40]

• Preventive Security officer Eham Al-'Amer, PA police officer Mahmoud Abu Al-Neda, and GIS officer Jamal Kharyoush were killed in a November 9, 2023 Israeli airstrike in Jenin.[41]

• PA customs officer 'Ali 'Alqam was killed in a December 4, 2023 firefight with Israeli forces in the Qalandiya refugee camp.[42]

• NSF officer Abd Al-Naser Al-Riyahi was killed on December 6, 2023 clash with Israeli forces in the Balata refugee camp.[43]

• Preventive Security officer Fares Khalifa was killed in a January 15, 2024 firefight with Israeli forces in the Nour Shams refugee camp. The PA held an official military funeral for him.[44]

• PA customs officer Hamza 'Ar'arawi was killed in a March 27, 2024 Israeli drone strike in the Jenin refugee camp. The PA Customs Police shared a post on Facebook praising him.[45]

Eham Al-'Amer, an officer with the PA Preventive Security agency who was also a member of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades and the Wasp's Nest terrorist militia. Source: Facebook.com/rty5555, November 9, 2023.

Fares Khalifa, an officer with the PA Preventive Security agency who was also a member of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades. Source: T.me/kataebaqsapalestine, January 15, 2024.

PA Security Officers And Officials Praise Slain Terrorists And Visit Their Mourning Tents

While the PA security agencies are supposed to prevent the activities of armed militias and terrorist organizations, they in fact assiduously praise terrorists who are killed, thus conveying the opposite message to the officers and fighters in its ranks. A prominent example was a condolence call made to the home of the family of the terrorist Mustafa Al-Kastouni, an Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades member who was killed in Jenin in a firefight with Israeli security forces on August 17, 2023.[46]

In a video posted on the Facebook page of the NSF's Department of Religious Guidance and on the NSF's TikTok account, Department of Religious Guidance sheikh Isma'il Badarin can be seen conveying condolences and "congratulations for the ascent to Heaven of this heroic martyr" on behalf of Jenin's acting governor Kamal Abu Al-Rub, NSF Commander General Nidal Abu Dukhan, and the Fatah Central Committee, which is chaired by PA President Mahmoud 'Abbas.[47]

Isma'il Badarin extending official condolences to the family of Mustafa Al-Kastouni.

It should be noted that the mourning tents of slain terrorists are frequented by members of the PA's security agencies making official mourning calls. In one example from August 24, 2023, an entire contingent of NSF officers made a condolence call to the family of 'Uthman Abu Kharaj, a PIJ operative who was killed two days earlier and who specialized in preparing and using explosive devices against Israeli forces.[48]

NSF officers visiting the home of 'Uthman Abu Kharaj's family. Source: Facebook.com/N.S.F.PAL, August 24, 2023.

NSF officers also came in great numbers to mourning tents set up in various areas throughout the West Bank after the death of the terrorist 'Uday Al-Tamimi, who carried out the October 9, 2022 shooting attack at the Shu'afat checkpoint in Jerusalem, killing a female Israeli soldier, and the October 19, 2022 shooting at the entrance to the Israeli West Bank town of Maale Adumim, during which he was killed.[49]

PA National Security Forces members at 'Uday Al-Tamimi's mourning tent in Nablus. Source: Facebook.com/N.S.F.PAL, October 22, 2022.

Many Palestinian security officers also arrived in uniform and with their service weapons to mourning tents honoring Lion's Den operatives who were killed by Israeli forces in Nablus on October 25, 2022.

Armed and uniformed PA security officers honoring slain Lion's Den operatives in Nablus. Source: Facebook.com/N.S.F.PAL and Twitter.com/NewpressPs, October 25, 2022.

In addition, a large number of PA security officers came to the mourning tent opened by Fatah's Hebron branch in honor of Hamas terrorist Muhammad Al-Ja'bari, who was killed by Israeli forces after having shot and killed an Israeli civilian at the entrance to the West Bank town of Kiryat Arba.[50]

The mourning event held by Fatah in Hebron for Al-Ja'bari. Source: Twitter.com/MonirAljaghoub, November 1, 2022.

 

 

* S. Schneidmann is a research fellow at MEMRI.