PA declares truce with clan in tribal court after weeks of unrest
The Palestinian Authority turned to the local tribal justice system to settle a conflict with the Arab al-Jahalin tribe after the Palestinian police killed one of its members, leaning on the local elders to restore and keep the peace.
RAMALLAH, West Bank — The Palestinian Authority, represented by a delegation headed by Fatah Central Committee member Abbas Zaki, agreed on a six-month temporary truce with the Arab al-Jahalin Bedouin tribe on Aug. 11. The agreement comes on the backdrop of the Aug. 9 killing of Ibrahim Audi al-Jahalin in the Arab al-Jahalin village outside al-Eizariya in East Jerusalem. Investigations into the incident are expected to be completed during the truce.
Tensions started when the PA customs police raided the Bedouin communities in the Judean desert on Aug. 9. They destroyed fuel stations in al-Eizariya that the PA claims are illegal as they lack permits and sell smuggled and low-grade diesel. PA forces chased diesel smugglers and opened fire, killing one young man. His death triggered a series of clashes between the tribe and the security forces.
The local Fatah office issued a statement on Aug. 10 confirming that members of security services stormed al-Eizariya and destroyed fuel stations.
The statement asserted that the PA’s customs police stormed al-Eizariya, destroyed a fuel station and headed for the village of Arab al-Jahalin. “Members of the security forces raided homes and violated and insulted their inhabitants. … Verbal altercations between the inhabitants and the forces soon escalated. The security forces opened fire and threw tear gas,” the statement added.
