Special to WorldTribune.com

RAMALLAH — The Palestinian Authority has banned Palestinian contact
with Israel’s military.

Officials said the PA has ordered Palestinians not to visit or contact
the Israel-Palestinian District Coordination Office, which provides permits
for work or medical treatment in Israel. The PA directive called for
Palestinians to submit any requests to the PA.

Officials said the PA was concerned over the poor turnout for
anti-Israeli demonstrations in 2012 in what was called the “Third Intifada.”

They said leading tribes in the southern West Bank were
quietly cooperating with Israeli authorities to maintain order in such
cities as Bethlehem and Hebron.

“It is completely forbidden to deal directly with the Israeli side,” PA
Gov. Abdul Fatah Hamayel said on April 16. “This decision is in the context of preserving public and national interests and for the convenience of all Palestinians.”

Officials said the PA order began in the Bethlehem district and would be implemented throughout the West Bank over the coming months. Bethlehem is located outside Jerusalem, Israel’s capital, and a key market for Palestinian labor.

Hamayel, the PA governor of Bethlehem, said any Palestinian found to be in direct contact with the Israeli military would be punished. He also imposed a ban on bringing Israeli agricultural products in Bethlehem.

Officials said the PA determined that Israel was using the joint
coordination offices, established in 1994, to undermine the regime of
Mahmoud Abbas. They said Israeli military and security officers were
exploiting Palestinian applications for intelligence recruitment.

“They want to infiltrate Palestinian society,” Hamayel said.

On April 16, a former PA minister said he supported Palestinian attacks
on Israeli soldiers. Ashraf Al Ajarmi told a conference at Israel’s Bar-Ilan
University that Palestinians would soon become the majority throughout
Israeli-controlled territories.

“As a human being I condemn all acts of violence against civilians, but
not against soldiers,” Al Ajarmi said. “I myself fought against the Israeli
military in Lebanon, and I’m proud of it.”

  ‘third intifada’, Gov. Abdul Fatah Hamayel, Governor of Bethlehem bans Palestinian contact with Israeli liaison office, Israel-Palestinian District Coordination Office, Mahmoud Abbas, Palestinians banned from contacting Israeli military after poor turnout for ‘Third Intifada’, West Bank