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Third intifada? PA hides intelligence files signaling conflict may be coming

The last time the PA issued such an order was in September 2000, ahead of the Second Intifada.

By Josh Plank, World Israel News

The Palestinian Authority has ordered its offices to hide intelligence documents in preparation for violent conflict if Israel goes ahead with plans to apply sovereignty to parts of Judea and Samaria, Channel 12 reported Tuesday.

According to the report, large numbers of hard copy documents are being taken out of offices in at least two cities to an unspecified hiding place over the past few days.

The last time the PA issued such an order was in September 2000, ahead of the Second Intifada, a violent wave of terrorism marked by increasingly powerful suicide bombings aimed at “shaking off” Israeli rule. The Second Intifada lasted until 2005, killing over 1,000 Israelis and severely injuring thousands.

The report comes ahead of the July 1 deadline for the beginning of the annexation process in accordance with an agreement between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Benny Gantz.

A recent poll found that 64 percent of Arabs living in Judea, Samaria, and Gaza support a new intifada against Israel to stop the implementation of President Trump’s peace plan, which offers U.S. consent to Israeli sovereignty over a limited area of Judea and Samaria.

Read  America's next ambassador to Israel backs annexation of Judea and Samaria

PA officials have warned that any move by Israel to annex settlements will result in violent confrontation. “If there is annexation, we are going to a confrontation on the ground,” senior PA official Jibril Rajoub told Kan Radio.

The Israel Defense Forces are preparing for multiple possible scenarios in the wake of annexation, from riots to a continuous wave of deadly terrorist acts on a grand scale.

A great deal of uncertainty and controversy continues to surround the Trump plan and any possible plans for Israeli sovereignty in the territories.

“Things are still not finalized with the Americans and the maps are not yet finalized. We need to exploit this opportunity that we have this president there in the White House. We cannot allow Trump to think that we are not interested,” Prime Minister Netanyahu recently said.