The Palestinian Authority announced on Thursday that it is halting security coordination with Israel in the wake of Israel’s counterterrorism operation in Jenin on Thursday morning, during which nine Palestinians, mostly armed terrorists, were killed.

The decision was announced by Nabil Abu Rudeineh, the Palestinian minister of information, following an “emergency” meeting of senior PA officials.

According to Abu Rudeineh, the decision was made in “light of the repeated aggression against our people, and the undermining of signed agreements” – a reference to commitments from the Oslo peace process in the 1990s. He added that the PA plans to file complaints with the U.N. Security Council, International Criminal Court, and other international bodies.

Israeli senior security officials said they haven’t received any official notice from the PA about changes in security coordination.

Following the PA’s announcement, US Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf spoke to the press, saying: “We don’t think this is the right step to take at this moment. Far from stepping back on security coordination, we believe it’s quite important that the parties retain, and if anything, deepen security coordination.”

Leaf said that she was briefed by Israel that the operation was necessary due to the “ticking time bomb of a terrorist threat,” and that she and her staff spent hours on the phone with Israeli and Palestinian officials in efforts to de-escalate the situation.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)