Five-party 'security meeting' between Israel and Palestinian Authority planned in Egypt

Preparations are underway for a five-party meeting to "strengthen security cooperation" between Israel and the Palestinian Authority (PA), Israeli media reported on Monday.

The meeting will take place under the auspices of the United States and will include Egypt and Jordan and will be held in the Egyptian Red Sea resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh, according to Israel's Kan broadcaster.

No date has been set for the meeting, where the latest developments in the occupied West Bank and ways to "confront the security situation" there will be discussed.

It will build upon previous discussions held over the past two months in Sharm el-Sheikh and Jordan’s Aqaba on "security issues", which comes amid a wave of bloody raids by Israeli forces which have left scores of Palestinians dead.

"There was absolutely no pressure on Israel to commit to any of the promises made."

Why the Aqaba summit was dead on arrival

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— The New Arab (@The_NewArab) March 13, 2023

Israel and the PA - in the presence of representatives from Jordan, Egypt, and the Biden administration - agreed during a meeting in March to revamp security cooperation amid the build up to the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, when tensions often run high.

But chaos erupted the following week across Israel and Palestinian territories, including raids at the Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem, which saw Israeli forces beat and round up worshippers.

Israeli forces have raided towns and villages across the West Bank nearly every day for over a year now, killing and arresting dozens of Palestinians. Israel claims it is clamping down on fugitives wanted for belonging to resistance groups, which it considers "terrorists". At least 150 Palestinians have been killed in 2023 alone.

Palestinian fighters have retaliated on some occasions, targeting Israeli military and security forces or settlers.

Palestinians on Monday are commemorating the 75th anniversary of Nakba when tens of thousands of Palestinians were expelled from their lands by Zionist militias upon the creation of the state of Israel in 1948.