Samaria Regional Council Head Demands Urgent Plan Against Palestinian Security Forces Turning Weapons on Israelis

Following the discovery of a 25-meter-deep tunnel in Qalqilya, Yossi Dagan, head of the Samaria Regional Council, has urgently appealed to Israel's Defense Minister, the Chief of Staff, and the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee chairman. Dagan is demanding the formulation of a response plan to a "turning of weapons" scenario, where Palestinian Authority security forces could potentially attack Israeli settlements and communities. The demand comes after a targeted operation by the Judea and Samaria District's Crime Fighting Unit and Border Police fighters uncovered the advanced tunnel, along with the beginnings of another.

Inside the discovered infrastructure, forces seized a significant cache of weapons and operational equipment, including an M16 rifle, a sniper rifle, magazines, and ammunition. Additionally, fertilizer materials used for making explosives were found, alongside telephones and a DVR device. Four suspects were apprehended at the scene.

Dagan warned in his letter about a scenario where tens of thousands of armed individuals within the Palestinian Authority's security mechanisms could turn their weapons and raid settlements in the Samaria region, the seam line area, and central Israeli cities. Kfar Saba Mayor Rafi Sa'ar echoed these concerns, emphasizing that this poses a real and immediate threat to residents in the seam line area.

Dagan concluded that the key lesson from the October 7th events is the need to prepare operationally for threats during their nascent stages, rather than waiting for them to fully mature.