PALESTINE Palestinian general strike in response to Israeli raid on Nablus

From the West Bank to Gaza and East Jerusalem, schools, universities and businesses close. Egypt and the UN try a difficult mediation to avoid an escalation. The UN special envoy speaks of an “already very unstable situation.” New powers in the Territories for Finance Minister Smotrich. Ahmed Qureia, mediator of the Oslo Accords, dies.

Jerusalem () – A general strike of all commercial activities in the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem is the first Palestinian response to yesterday’s Israeli raid on Nablus, which left 11 dead, injured more than a hundred and sparked a new escalation in Gaza overnight. In response to the call of several local leaders, schools, universities and businesses closed their doors and suspended all their activities in protest, while international diplomacy tries a difficult mediation to avoid another bloodshed. Representatives of Egypt and the United Nations have started negotiations between the parties and the UN special envoy for the Middle East, Tor Wennesland, has arrived in the Strip to meet with Hamas leaders.

“I continue my engagement with all parties involved in an effort to defuse the escalation,” the UN diplomat declared in a note before his departure. And addressing all parties involved, from Israel to the leaders of Gaza and the West Bank, he urged them to “refrain from making gestures that could further inflame an already highly unstable situation.”

The trigger for the new crisis front was yesterday’s assault on Nablus, one of the most populous and most commercially important centers in the West Bank, which for several hours seemed like a “war zone.” It was in broad daylight, unlike previous operations that took place at night or at dawn. The Israeli military has engaged in a heavy firefight with militants in the area, particularly members of the “Lion’s Den” group, which has been gaining a foothold in the past year and appears to be gaining influence. Although it claims to be independent, the movement is reportedly funded by Hamas and Islamic Jihad and is believed to be responsible for shooting attacks against soldiers and settlers in settlements in recent months, including one in October that killed a soldier.

Yesterday there were at least 11 victims and more than a hundred injured. Among the dead were Palestinian civilians, including three elderly people and a boy just 14 years old. Rockets were fired from the Strip into southern Israel overnight, followed by airstrikes and Star of David fighter jet bombings of military targets, causing no further deaths.

Since the beginning of the year, the Palestinian death toll has reached 61 in less than two months, the highest number in the Territories since 2000. Last year the total number of victims was 150. The escalation of violence is worrying Palestinian leaders, including Nabil Abu Rudeineh, spokesman for the president of the Palestinian National Authority, who called for “an end to the continuous attacks against our people.” Meanwhile, Hamas leaders warned that “patience is running out” and an “open confrontation” with Israel is increasingly likely if there is no change.

Adding to the tension is the heavy hand adopted by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government, dominated by ultranationalists. He is the most right-wing in the history of the country, in power for two months, and in these hours he has not made any official comment. In addition, also in the last hours, the collaborators of the head of the Executive announced that an agreement was reached with the Minister of Finance, Bezalel Smotrich, at the head of a religious-Zionist party and a firm supporter of the settlements, which will grant him more powers. civilians in the territories of the West Bank.

A situation that for many experts risks escalating into a new intifada and that worries activists and world leaders such as the UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, who affirms that it is “the most heated in years”. Commenting on the operation in Nablus, the head of UN diplomacy calls it “deeply worrying” and calls for a greater effort to reduce violence and restore calm. A frontal clash that makes the times of the Oslo Peace Accords of 1993, in which the former Palestinian prime minister Ahmed Qureia, who died yesterday, played a prominent role as a negotiator.