Unrest in the West Bank Following Hamas Call

Despite the participation of over 40,000 Palestinians of all ages in this week's Friday prayers at Al-Aqsa Mosque in East Jerusalem, unrest in the West Bank continues. In response to calls from armed Palestinian organizations for a march towards Jerusalem, hundreds of Palestinians attempted to cross the security barrier between the West Bank and Israeli settlements starting from Friday afternoon. Hamas stated that crossing the wall is a way to support Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa. Palestinian youth also supported the famous slogan of the late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, 'Forward to Jerusalem,' on social media on the tenth anniversary of his death. However, both Palestinian Authority security forces and Israeli security forces prevented this attempt by Palestinians to cross the security barrier. The effort to cross the barrier led to unrest that continued until Friday night; Qalandiya, Silwad, and Hebron were among the unrest points in the West Bank. Meanwhile, Haaretz reported that the Israeli army has told its soldiers that in the event of attacks such as the throwing of firecrackers and Molotov cocktails, which make them feel their lives are in danger, they can use live ammunition; until now, they were only allowed to use rubber bullets. At the same time, widespread unrest over the past month, which raised the possibility of a third intifada, has largely subsided in Jerusalem following Thursday night meetings in Amman between the King of Jordan, the Israeli Prime Minister, the Palestinian Authority leader, and the U.S. Secretary of State. Following the leaders' meeting in Amman, the foreign ministers of the U.S. and Jordan stated in a press conference that the Israeli Prime Minister and Palestinian leadership have committed to efforts to restore calm. On the other hand, according to Haaretz, Israel has ordered the home of Abdulrahman al-Shaloudi's father in the Silwan village in East Jerusalem to be 'sealed.' It has been ordered that the fourth floor of the building where al-Shaloudi's father lives be sealed, but the building will not be demolished. Al-Shaloudi last month drove his father's car into passengers disembarking from a tram in Jerusalem; in that attack, a three-month-old baby and a tourist from Ecuador were killed, and several others were injured. Benjamin Netanyahu stated last week that he has asked legal authorities to consider demolishing or sealing the homes of those who carry out terrorist attacks against Israelis, such as drivers who deliberately run over people or attackers who use knives in public places. Israel claims that demolishing or sealing the homes of these attackers can serve as a deterrent; attackers know they might be killed, but if they know that their families will also suffer from their deaths, they might refrain from attacking. A U.S. State Department spokesperson on Thursday described the potential demolition or sealing of the homes of these attackers as 'counterproductive' and 'collective punishment.' Meanwhile, during clashes on Friday night between Druze Arabs and Muslims in the Abu Snan neighborhood in Galilee in northern Israel, nearly forty people were injured; the condition of one of the injured is critical. The Druze Arabs of Galilee are loyal to Israel, and their children serve in the Israeli army and security institutions; one officer from this community was killed two weeks ago by a Palestinian attacker, Ibrahim al-Aqari, who ran him over in Jerusalem. The Arabs of Abu Snan claim that soldiers among the Druze Arabs shot at Muslim Arabs during the events in Abu Snan on Friday night.