Afrasianet - Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz announced that the army is preparing for a scenario that he described as a "coup of guns", in which the Palestinian Authority and its affiliated organizations will direct their weapons against settlers and occupation forces in the West Bank and the settlements near the separation line.
Katz said during a meeting of the Israeli government that if this scenario occurs, war will be declared on the Palestinian Authority and a full-scale attack will be carried out according to a plan that he said was prepared in advance and approved with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The campaign will be "short and intense", he said, and will include the use of ground and air forces, special units and means, as well as the targeting of senior officials, and the destruction of weapons and weapons.
The plan also includes the evacuation of large numbers of residents and the destruction of infrastructure by armed factions in cities and refugee camps across the West Bank, he said, as part of what he described as a model similar to what happened in Gaza and Lebanon.
Katz's announcement comes in light of the escalating tension in the West Bank, where Israeli reports earlier reported that the security establishment is preparing for a "gun coup" scenario, in conjunction with the continuation of Israeli military operations in several areas of the West Bank.
Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz has threatened to launch an all-out campaign against the PA based on a scenario in which PA security forces could turn their weapons against Israel.
When asked if the allegation was fabricated, Katz said it was based on a presentation the IDF made to the government on Monday about the military's need to prepare for extreme scenarios.
However, additional IDF sources said that the IDF did not have concrete intelligence indicating a planned insurgency by PA security forces or Fatah elements. They acknowledged, however, that the IDF must prepare for extreme scenarios, including highly unlikely ones.
Katz presented the scenario during a security briefing to the government on the IDF's preparations in the West Bank. His statements were not coordinated with the IDF, and military sources did not indicate that they agreed with his decision to announce the scenario.
"The IDF's specific reference scenario regarding Judea and Samaria specifies that you must prepare for the possibility of an attack by jihadist elements against settlers and IDF soldiers, as a lesson from the events of October 7 in Gaza," Katz said.
"The Israeli army is carrying out strong activity against terror centers on the ground, including the evacuation of refugee camps in northern Samaria," he said, claiming that "terrorism has fallen to its lowest level in decades with significant challenges remaining."
At the same time, Katz said, the IDF was preparing for a scenario in which PA security operatives and PA affiliates would turn their weapons against Israelis, IDF forces in the West Bank and communities along the line of contact.
He threatened that in such a case, war would be declared on the Palestinian Authority, and the Israeli army would launch an all-out offensive in accordance with an organized plan formulated and approved by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and before him, in accordance with the IDF's specific principles.
Katz said such a campaign would be short and vigorous and would include ground and air operations, as well as what he described as special measures.
The campaign will include the use of ground and air forces and the use of special means, the targeting and expulsion of senior officials, the destruction of weapons and military equipment, the large-scale evacuation of the population and the destruction of terrorist infrastructure within the cities and in all refugee camps in Judea and Samaria, according to the model of Gaza and Lebanon, as well as the strengthening of forces and the defense of Israeli communities.
Despite all this, Shin Bet sources told the Jerusalem Post that they were not aware of any concrete threat from the Palestinian Authority. This confirms that such statements are used for electoral purposes.
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