Fighting has erupted in the Jenin refugee camp between Palestinian security forces and the Jenin Brigades, leaving a commander from the occupied West Bank armed group dead and several other people injured.
The fighting at dawn came five days after Palestinian Authority (PA) forces surrounded the camp and is, according to PA spokesperson Brigadier General Anwar Rajab, the penultimate stage of “Operation Protect the Homeland”.
Rajab said Operation Protect the Homeland was launched to “eradicate sedition and chaos” in the West Bank.
Sources told Al Jazeera that PA forces also surrounded the Jenin Government Hospital, searched ambulances, and stormed Ibn Sina Hospital.
Jenin Brigades commander killed
Rajab neither confirmed nor denied the death of a Jenin Brigades commander.
However, sources confirmed to our colleagues from Al Jazeera Arabic that commander Yazid Ja’ayseh had been killed, according to the alliance of armed Palestinian groups, the Popular Resistance Committees.
PA forces reportedly prevented residents from bidding farewell to Ja’ayseh, with claims that his body was being withheld.
Criticism of the PA
The Popular Resistance Committees condemned Ja’ayseh’s killing as “a serious violation of all national norms and traditions” that is “in line with the Zionist agenda that aims to eliminate the resistance in the West Bank”.
In a separate statement, Hamas described Ja’ayseh as a “martyr leader” and condemned his killing as “shameful” adding that it would “fuel internal disputes”.
The PA has partial administrative authority in the West Bank, which Israel has occupied since 1967.
Jenin and its adjacent refugee camp are a stronghold for armed factions, including the Jenin Brigades, who are seen as a more effective resistance to the Israeli occupation, in contrast with the PA which coordinates security matters with Israel.
Tensions have further escalated in the occupied territory after the PA arrested several armed fighters earlier this month.
On Thursday, the PA also admitted that its forces were responsible for the death of a 19-year-old Palestinian man during clashes with fighters in Jenin.
The security forces had initially claimed Rahbi Shalabi was beaten to death by “lawbreakers”, but later admitted “full responsibility” for his death.
After the clashes that killed Shalabi and wounded a 16-year-old relative of his, Hamas condemned the PA security forces, which is dominated by its political rival Fatah.
