Far-right minister Ben-Gvir boasts of demolishing Palestinian homes in election video

Defense Minister Israel Katz declared on Tuesday his intention to launch a full-scale conflict against the Palestinian Authority (PA) should Palestinian security forces or Tanzim affiliates turn their weapons against Israeli citizens or IDF troops in the West Bank. Katz based this assertion on an IDF presentation to the cabinet the previous day, which emphasized the need for the military to prepare for extreme scenarios.

However, additional IDF sources reported that there was no solid intelligence pointing to a planned rebellion by PA security forces or Tanzim elements. Katz argued that the October 7 attack in Gaza demonstrated that the IDF had previously underestimated the gravity of extreme scenarios. The IDF has significantly altered its approach to responding to surprise attacks since October 7, focusing on enemy capabilities rather than intent, and conducting readiness exercises to test its response to large-scale assaults.

Katz claimed that terrorism had reached its lowest level in decades, despite ongoing challenges. He further suggested that he had unverified intelligence that the IDF lacked. The IDF's campaign against PA forces would be concise, potent, and comprehensive, encompassing ground and air operations, the targeting and expulsion of senior officials, the destruction of weapons and military infrastructure, and the forcible evacuation of residents and demolition of terrorist facilities in Judea and Samaria.