The scene in Ariel, in the West Bank, after an Israeli security guard was fatally shot in a terror attack. Photo: Reuters

A column in the official Palestinian Authority (PA) daily urged Palestinians to “contribute directly to raising the bar of popular resistance” — a term used by the PA to refer to violence and terror, among other things.

Omar Hilmi Al-Ghoul, a regular columnist for the paper, continued his incitement by calling to “advance the acts of struggle,” “liberate Palestine,” and bring about “the complete removal of Zionist colonialism:”

All the factions of political activity and all the sectors of the [Palestinian] people must … contribute directly to raising the bar of popular resistance and strengthening the spirit of political partnership and partnership on the ground. This is in order to advance the acts of struggle against the Zionist colonialists in all parts of Palestine until its liberation and until the complete removal of Zionist colonialism from its land. [emphasis added]

[Official PA daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, June 28, 2022]

As Palestinian Media Watch (PMW) has exposed, PA Chairman Abbas has himself categorized terror attacks and murders as “peaceful popular uprising.” After 14 Israelis had been murdered during the 2015-2016 ‎terror wave (“The Knife Intifada”), Abbas said: “We want peaceful popular uprising, and that’s what this is:”

Abbas: “No one called for this uprising and no one asked for it. It stemmed from the hearts of the young. … We said to everyone that we want peaceful popular uprising, and that’s what this is. That’s what this is. However, the aggression of firing bullets has come from the Israelis.”

[Official PA TV, Nov. 16, 2015]

The use of the term “the complete removal of Zionist colonialism from [Palestine’s] land” is entirely in line with the PA and Fatah’s policies. PMW has documented numerous times that the PA’s true intent and political goal is to erase all of Israel and establish “Palestine from the [Jordan] River to the [Mediterranean] Sea.”

Fatah likewise expressed this goal recently:

Posted text: “The national movement’s weapon will continue to speak against the enemy until the end of the occupation and the establishment of the Palestinian state whose capital is Jerusalem. No statute of limitations will apply to our historical right to take back all the Palestinian land from the [Jordan] River to the [Mediterranean] Sea, including the [Jordan] River and the [Mediterranean] Sea. We will defend our people with it (i.e., the weapon), and all the international and divine laws guarantee this. To hell with your double standards.” 

[Official Fatah Facebook page, May 25, 2022]

The recent column in the official PA daily is not a lone example. The PA and Fatah continuously endorse and promote terror. Just recently, PMW exposed that the PA incited riots and terror during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan in April. This is an ongoing pattern — and the real reason for the lack of peace in the region.

The author is a senior analyst at Palestinian Media Watch, where a version of this article first appeared.