Where are Israeli-Palestinian security talks headed?

Secret talks between senior Israeli and Palestinian security officers on new security arrangements for the West Bank were reportedly held in recent weeks. After almost six months of random individual terror attacks on Israelis, West Bank Palestinians are coming to the conclusion that this round of violence — defined by some as a third intifada — is not producing any political benefit nor is it affecting Israeli public opinion or provoking an awakening of the international community.

In a recent public opinion poll published on March 14 by the Jerusalem Media and Communication Center, 41% of Palestinians oppose continuation of the violent uprising against Israel. Among the opposing voices, 51.6% are from the West Bank. This has led, according to this poll, to a moderation in Palestinian public opinion: Support for Fatah in the West Bank and Gaza Strip is 35.5% as opposed to only 16.5% who support Hamas. Of those participating in the poll, 82% oppose the Islamic State. Most importantly, 69% of those responding support a two-state solution against only 24.8% who support a binational state. Surprisingly perhaps, 52.7% of the Palestinians favor security cooperation with Israel.

These trends have not gone unnoticed by the leaders of Israel’s security establishment. According to a senior Palestinian security official close to President Mahmoud Abbas, the discreet talks by officers of both sides are aimed at reaching new understandings regarding Israel’s military activity in Palestinian cities in Area A.

According to the Oslo Accord, the Palestinian Authority has full security and civilian jurisdiction over all Palestinian West Bank cities. Ever since Operation Defensive Shield in March 2002, Israel has decided, unilaterally, to allow its army to enter Palestinian cities for the arrest of suspected terrorists and inciters, despite Israeli-Palestinian security cooperation. Palestinians view this as an abolition of the Oslo Accord and a deepening of the occupation.