Israel and the West Bank
Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas plans to meet with Hamas chief Khaled Mashaal in Doha, Qatar during the week of June 13th to discuss a number of topics including potential Fatah-Hamas reconciliation and the French peace initiative. Qatari Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani will also take part in the discussions.
Israeli forces arrested six members of Hamas during a raid in the West Bank on May 29th. The men were part of the terror cell responsible for an April 18th bus bombing in Jerusalem that injured 19 people.
IDF soldiers arrested 10 Palestinians and confiscated rifles, body armor, and homemade guns during a raid in the West bank village of Kufr al-Dik on May 25th. The Palestinians detained were suspected of being involved violent demonstrations and other forms of “popular terrorism,” according to the IDF.
Palestinian lawmaker and senior member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) Khalida Jarrar was released from prison on June 3rd following a 15-month sentence. She was accused of planning to abduct IDF soldiers in attempt to negotiate the release of Arab prisoners in Israeli jails.
An IDF soldier was stabbed in the Nachalat Yitzhak neighborhood of Tel Aviv on May 30th by a Palestinian teenager. The soldier was evacuated to a nearby hospital, while the attacker has been arrested.
A Palestinian man has died following clashes with Israeli soldiers in the West Bank city of Nablus on June 6th. The man was part of a group of Palestinians throwing stones at Jewish worshippers in Joseph’s tomb and was shot in the ensuing confrontation.
A gunman opened fire on an Israeli bus near the settlement of Tekoa in the West Bank in a drive-by shooting on May 21st. No injuries were reported as Israeli forces searched for the suspect.
Gaza
According to Israeli media reports, Islamic State in Sinai commander Shadi al-Menii met with Hamas officials in Gaza on June 2nd to discuss potential cooperative efforts between the two terrorist organizations. The commander reportedly promised to help Hamas smuggle arms into the enclave in exchange for access to more sophisticated weapons.
Hamas executed three men on May 31st to deter rising crime in Gaza. The UN and other international human rights criticized the killings.
In response to rocket fire emanating from Gaza, the Israeli Air Force commenced strikes against Hamas terror infrastructure on May 26th. No Israelis were hurt in the rocket attack.
Egypt temporarily opened the Rafah border crossing with Gaza on June 1st, allowing a few hundred people to cross the border before the start of Ramadan. The crossing stayed open for four days, according to Hamas officials.
Israel will begin increasing its supply of electricity to the Gaza strip in attempts to reduce water pollution in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. More energy will help Palestinians operate a wastewater treatment plan, reducing the amount of raw sewage dumped into coastal areas.
Sinai
The Egyptian military announced on June 2nd that 22 terrorists were killed during the third phase of operation Martyr’s Right in North Sinai. The operation also destroyed 28 terrorist hideouts and 9 homes. According to a government statement on May 25th an additional 85 militants were killed in May.
Islamic State in the northern Sinai peninsula carried out a large attack killing 15 Egyptian police officers at the El-Arish checkpoint on June 3rd. The terrorists detonated a car bomb before opening fire against the troops at the site.
Syria
Syrian newspaper Zaman al-Wasl reported the first IAF attack since the appointment of Avigdor Lieberman as defense minister. The paper claimed the airstrikes were carried out against Hezbollah weapon caches in a village north of Homs, where antennas for Syrian radar systems were also present.
Jordan
Five Jordanian intelligence officers were killed in what officials are calling a terrorist attack on a security office outside of the Palestinian Baqa’a camp on June 6th. A suspect was arrested nearby.
