JENIN OPERATION: TENSE CALM IN QABATIYA; PA

C O N F I D E N T I A L JERUSALEM 000777 SIPDIS NEA FOR FRONT OFFICE, NSC FOR ABRAMS/SINGH/PASCUAL E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/09/2018 TAGS: KWBG PINS IS PGOV PTER SUBJECT: JENIN OPERATION: TENSE CALM IN QABATIYA; PA EXPANDS VILLAGE PATROLS REF: A. JERUSALEM 764 ¶B. JERUSALEM 757 Classified By: Consul General Jake Walles, for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) Summary. PA security forces (PASF) officers report successes May 8-9 in seizing contraband and closing outstanding criminal cases and warrants. PASF patrolled in several villages south and east of Jenin with minor opposition from gunmen and stone-throwers, and carried out a raid on a Hamas activist's home. PASF maintain checkpoints and street patrols in Qabatiya May 9 and report that shots were fired at Qabatiya's police station but the situation is otherwise calm, with community leaders pledging support for the security campaign. A Gaza-based Hamas leader told local press that PASF were trained with U.S. money to fight Palestinian resistance and impose a "Zionist agenda." End summary. PA Expands Village Patrols, Tallies Stolen Vehicles and Case Resolutions -------------- ¶2. (SBU) Police contacts report that the PA has seized 111 stolen/unregistered vehicles and tallied 57 separate confiscations of contraband (narcotics, arms or stolen goods) in Jenin Governorate since May 3. Police also note that a total of 335 criminal cases and outstanding summonses have been closed in this period, most involving minor crimes, with suspects amnestied or given minor punishments. ¶3. (C) PASF carried out presence patrols and raids May 8-9 in Jalaqmus, Raba, Um al-Tut, Dayr Abu Dayf (all Area A east of Jenin),Misliyah and Marka (Area A south of Jenin) and Bayt Qad (Area B east of Jenin). National Security Forces (NSF) contacts report that unknown gunmen fired shots at PA patrols in Dayr Abu Dayf early May 9, but no injuries or damage resulted. NSF contacts say unknown attackers in Dayr Abu Dayf and Im al-Tut threw stones at PA patrol vehicles May 9, lightly injuring one policeman. PASF contacts say some of the village patrols included anti-Hamas raids and PASF searched the home of Hamas activist Umar Yusif Alayan, seizing several items as evidence. PA Security Chiefs Hold Meetings with Qabatiya Leaders; Shots Fired at Station -------------- ¶4. (C) PASF maintain checkpoints and street patrols in Qabatiya on May 9. They report minimal opposition but say they sense quiet hostility. Police contacts report that shots were fired twice at Qabatiya's police station May 7-8, without injuries or damage. PASF chiefs report that they joined Jenin Governor Qaddura Musa to meet with Qabatiya community leaders May 8 and the community leaders pledged support for the PA's security campaign. Since May 6, the PA has arrested 4 PIJ activists on criminal charges in Qabatiya: Sayf Abd al-Rahman Nazal, Mu'tad Dib Sadiq Nazal, Ali Sulayman Kmayl and Firas Taysir Musa. Hamas: "PA West Bank Forces Trained with U.S. Money to Impose Zionist Agenda" -------------- ¶5. (SBU) Gaza-based Hamas PLC member Mushir al-Masri told local press May 8 that PASF were trained with U.S. money to fight Palestinian resistance and impose a "Zionist agenda." He said PASF were "brainwashed with defeatist culture" and were deployed to strip the Palestinian people of their ability to defend their rights and their lands against usurpation. WALLES