Towns under the control of the Palestinian Authority in Judea and Samaria played a siren on Wednesday afternoon to mark 76 years since the “disaster” of Israel’s re-establishment.
“Arabs in the area will sound a siren at 12:00 to mark the day of the establishment of the State of Israel. The siren may be heard in [Israeli] towns,” the Binyamin Regional Council, which has jurisdiction over large parts of southern Samaria, wrote in a message to residents.
A similar notice was sent to Israelis in the Mount Hebron region of Judea, according to Hakol HaYehudi reporter Elchanan Groner.
The Palestinian Authority’s official Wafa news agency said the alarm ushered in 76 seconds of silence “in various Palestinian cities.”
While the Jewish state celebrated its independence on Tuesday in accordance with the Hebrew calendar, Palestinians on May 15 mark “Nakba” (“Catastrophe”) Day to mourn Israel’s establishment in 1948.
The Hatsofot forum for soldiers’ wives in Judea and Samaria on Wednesday morning sent an urgent appeal to the Israel Defense Forces and other officials, demanding that the sirens be prevented from sounding.
Security officials have been preparing for an uptick in terrorism and riots across Judea and Samaria on Wednesday, with tensions already high since Hamas’s Oct. 7 attacks and the ensuing war.
Ahead of the “Nakba” commemoration, “The Reservists-Generation of Victory” Telegram group called on IDF reservists to volunteer for guard duty at communities and farms in Judea, Samaria, the Jordan Valley, the Galilee and the Negev, Kipa News reported on Sunday.
Judea and Samaria saw a dramatic rise in Palestinian terrorist attacks in 2023 compared to the previous year, with shootings reaching their highest level since the Second Intifada of 2000-05, according to IDF data.
Between Oct. 7 and Jan. 15, Rescuers Without Borders first responders recorded more than 2,600 Palestinian attacks targeting Israelis in Judea and Samaria, including 760 cases of rock-throwing, 551 fire bombings, 12 attempted or successful stabbings and nine vehicular assaults.
