After Ceasefire, Security Forces Brace for Possible West Bank, Jerusalem Clashes

Police on Friday geared up for possible unrest in East Jerusalem following Hamas’s victory claim after the recent round of fighting between Israel and the Gaza-based terror group.

Border Police forces in East Jerusalem, especially surrounding the Old City and by the entrance and exits of certain Palestinian neighborhoods, were said to be inspecting and questioning those coming and going, the Kan public broadcaster reported.

The Hamas terror group during the early hours of Friday claimed victory after Israel officially announced it had agreed to a ceasefire, ending the 11 days of fighting.

In recent weeks, some Palestinians on the Temple Mount have waved the terror group’s flag, with a number of worshipers reportedly chanting in support of Hamas and calling for it to carry out attacks on Israel.

Palestinians wave flags of the Hamas terror group after afternoon prayers for the last Friday of the holy Muslim month of Ramadan, on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem’s Old City, May 7, 2021. (Jamal Awad/Flash90)

Palestinian terror groups have tied the rocket fire from Gaza — which ceased on Friday — to unrest in Jerusalem connected to both prayer on the Temple Mount during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, and the pending eviction of a number of Palestinian families from the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood.

Meanwhile, in the West Bank, the Israel Defense Forces are also said to be bracing for potential violence, amid concerns of clashes with the military after Friday prayers.

In Hamas-stronghold cities, such as Hebron, the terror group is planning to celebrate “the resistance’s victory” according to Kan.

Palestinians celebrate in the streets following a ceasefire brokered by Egypt between Israel and the ruling Hamas terror group in Khan Yunis, in the southern Gaza Strip, on May 21, 2021 (Abed Rahim Khatib/Flash90)

On Thursday, the IDF announced that Border Police units, initially operating in the West Bank, that had been sent to the central Israeli city of Lod to assist in local unrest, were to return to their original mission.

On Friday, the Shin Bet said it had arrested a number of Jewish suspects in connection with a May 13 stabbing of an Arab man in Jerusalem.

The victim, in his 20s, was seriously wounded in the attack, which the security service said had a nationalist motive.

The Ynet news site published footage from the immediate aftermath of the attack which apparently showed a mob of right-wing youths assaulting police officers on the scene.

Violence in the West Bank and Jerusalem increased significantly since terror groups in the Gaza Strip began firing rockets at Israel in the most recent round of violence.

Illustrative: Palestinian protesters clash with Israeli security forces near the Hawara checkpoint, south of the West Bank city of Nablus on May 18, 2021. (Nasser Ishtayeh/Flash90)

On Sunday, seven Border Police soldiers were injured, including two moderately, in a car-ramming attack in Jerusalem’s flashpoint Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood.

Last Friday also saw at least nine West Bank Palestinians killed by Israeli live fire during violent clashes with the IDF, the Palestinian Authority health ministry said. Palestinians threw rocks, Molotov cocktails and shot fireworks at several locations across the West Bank, according to the IDF.

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.