Wikipedia

Area A

Area A
منطقة أ
שטח א
West Bank area under the Oslo II Accord
Map
The shaded areas represent Area A
Established1995
Largest cityNablus (156,906)
CurrencyIsraeli new shekel
Jordanian dinar
A sign warning Israelis against entry into Area A

Area A (Arabic: منطقة أ, romanized: minṭaqa alif; Hebrew: שטח א, romanized: Shetakh A) is an area under the civil and security control of the Palestinian National Authority. It represents about 18% of the area and 55% of the population of the West Bank.[1]

The largest cities in Area A include the following cities and their surroundings: Nablus, Jenin, Tulkarm, Qalqilya, Ramallah, Bethlehem, Jericho, and 80% of Hebron. There are no Israeli settlements in Area A.[2]

History

[edit]

During the first phase of the implementation of the Oslo Accords in 1995, Area A comprised 3% of the West Bank excluding East Jerusalem.[3]

In 1997, the Hebron Protocol divided the city of Hebron was divided into two areas: Area H1, representing approximately 80% of the city, was placed under Palestinian civil and security control (equivalent to Area A), while Area H2, representing the remaining 20%, was placed under Palestinian civil and Israeli security control (equivalent to Area B). H2, which is located in the central part of the city and includes the historic center, is home to approximately 40,000 Palestinians (19% of Hebron's population) and 850 Jewish settlers. Another 8,000 Jews live in Kiryat Arba on the outskirts of Hebron.[4]

Since the start of the Second Intifada in October 2000, Israeli citizens have been completely banned from entering Area A, by order of the IDF's general command. However, the IDF has admitted that in practice, it only ensured that Jewish Israelis complied with the ban, and that Arab Israelis may enter Area A.[5]

During the Operation Defensive Shield in 2002, the Israeli military lifted the ban on military entry and temporarily reoccupied the area in order to suppress the Second Intifada. Following the end of the Second Intifada in 2005, Israel handed back the sectors of Area A that it controlled back to the Palestinian Authority. Israeli army first withdrew from Jericho,[6] followed by Tulkarm and Jenin soon afterwards.[7]

Since then, the Israeli military has regularly entered the area, usually at night, to conduct raids to arrest those suspected of involvement in attacks.[8] Such raids are typically coordinated with Palestinian National Security Forces.[9] In recent years, there have been discussion of deepening security cooperation between the IDF and the PA despite lack of diplomatic progress.[10]

As of 2025, Israeli citizens and residents without permits[11] continue to be strictly prohibited by the Israeli Police and the lower level of the IDF from entering Area A. However, the lower level of the IDF alleged preferential treatment, in that the Civil Administration (also part of the IDF) "looks the other way when Arab-Israeli civilians show up [unpermitted] at Area A checkpoints."[12][13] However, the Citizenship and Entry into Israel Law has disproportionately denied citizenship to Arab citizens of Israel, which limits their options to a laissez passer permit to travel abroad.[14]

References

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  1. ^ "Area C: More than 60% of the occupied West Bank threatened by Israeli annexation" (PDF). European Parliament. 24 April 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 March 2018.
  2. ^ "The Demise of the Oslo Process". Middle East Research and Information Project. 26 March 1999. Archived from the original on 3 July 2022.
  3. ^ "Ten maps to understand the occupied West Bank". Al Jazeera. 16 September 2024. Archived from the original on 5 June 2025.
  4. ^ "Leave No One Behind: A Perspective on Vulnerability and Structural Disadvantage in Palestine" (PDF). United Nations. 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 August 2021.
  5. ^ "צה"ל מודה: ערבים נכנסים חופשי לשטחי A, יהודים לא" [IDF admits: Arabs enter Area A freely, Jews do not] (in Hebrew). Walla. 12 June 2011. Archived from the original on 14 March 2016.
  6. ^ "Handover of West Bank town of Jericho begins". New York Times. 16 March 2005. Archived from the original on 7 July 2019.
  7. ^ "Israel plans early transfer of West Bank town to PA". The Irish Times. 16 June 2005. Archived from the original on 18 November 2023.
  8. ^ "Beitunian nights: The IDF in the West Bank". Ynet. 18 March 2016. Archived from the original on 22 March 2016.
  9. ^ "Palestinian Security Forces Deny IDF Troops Entry to Jenin". Ha'aretz. 11 December 2016. Archived from the original on 20 May 2023.
  10. ^ "Limiting Incursions in Area A: The Next Step for Israeli-Palestinian Security Coordination". Washington Institute for Near East Policy. 20 April 2016. Archived from the original on 5 June 2025.
  11. ^ "Status of authorizations for entry of Palestinians into Israel; for their passage from Judea and Samaria into the Gaza Strip; and for their departure abroad" (PDF). Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories. 8 February 2022.
  12. ^ "Police reiterate Israeli citizens should not enter Area A in the West Bank". The Times of Israel. 23 June 2024.
  13. ^ "'Area A' prohibition is for Jews not just Israelis". Jerusalem Post. 8 June 2025. Archived from the original on 8 June 2025.
  14. ^ "From Challenge". Archived from the original on 5 July 2008.