Palestinian police are struggling to crack down on widespread illegal gun possession and other crimes, but face an uphill battle against criminal gangs and lawlessness.
Two Palestinian policemen were killed in an exchange of gunfire on Thursday in the city of Shechem (Nablus) during an attempt to arrest wanted Palestinians, while two Palestinian criminals were killed on Friday during the raid.
The Palestinian Ma’am news agency reported that two other policemen were wounded in the incident.
A Palestinian security official told Ma’an that three M16 assault rifles were found with the wanted men’s bodies.
Palestinian security forces have launched a campaign to detain other Palestinians tied with the shooting.
Spokesman Adnan Dmairi said Palestinian police were “determined to uproot the crime and lawlessness from our society.”
Five Palestinian security officers have been killed in the past month in similar clashes, as Palestinian Authority (PA) head Mahomed Abbas appears to by losing his iron grip on various areas within the PA.
By: Aryeh Savir, World Israel News