Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) chief Ronen Bar told the political-security cabinet at an annual intelligence assessment this past Sunday that the Palestinian Authority (PA) is in a difficult economic and governmental situation, and that there is a fear it could collapse, Barak Ravid of Walla! News reported on Thursday.
Two ministers who attended the cabinet meeting told Walla! that Bar added that Israel must work to strengthen the PA. The Shin Bet and the Prime Minister's Office refused to comment on the report.
A minister who attended the cabinet meeting said that the Shin Bet chief noted that strengthening the Palestinian Authority was important in order to both strengthen stability in Judea and Samaria as well as to weaken Hamas.
Senior IDF officials who also gave an overview to the ministers during the meeting conveyed the same message and also said that action should be taken to strengthen the Palestinian Authority, Ravid’s report said.
Meanwhile on Thursday, Channel 12 News reported that Defense Minister Benny Gantz is expected to meet next week with PA chairman Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah.
This would be the second meeting between Gantz and Abbas this year, and comes against the backdrop of a series of lone-wolf terrorist attacks in Jerusalem, including one fatal attack.
The purpose of the latest meeting is to strengthen Abbas and the Palestinian Authority, so that Hamas will not be strengthened in Judea and Samaria. Several proposals for security and economic cooperation that will assist the PA in its day-to-day operations will be presented.
Gantz previously met with Abbas in August to discuss measures to strengthen the PA's economy. Following the meeting, Israel agreed to loan 500 million shekels to the PA.
A senior official in the government criticized Gantz following his first meeting with Abbas, saying he “only cares about his own political interests” and “is behaving like a government within a government.”
The Defense Minister, however, insisted that Prime Minister Naftali Bennett was aware of his meeting with Abbas and approved it.