Attack on Israeli soldiers by PA guard exposes split between Netanyahu and army over how to respond<\/p>\n
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has described<\/a> his security forces\u2019 cooperation with the Israeli military as \u201csacred\u201d. But an armed attack on an Israeli checkpoint last\u00a0weekend by a Palestinian security official, which left three Israeli soldiers injured, suggests that Abbas\u2019 view may\u00a0not be widely shared among Palestinians.<\/p>\n Amjad Sukari, aged 34, a driver and bodyguard in Ramallah for the Palestinian attorney general, was shot dead<\/a> on Sunday after he opened fire at Israeli soldiers stationed at a \u201cVIP crossing\u201d near Ramallah.<\/p>\n It was the second time in recent months that a PA security officer has opened fire on Israeli soldiers.<\/p>\n In December\u00a0Mazen Ariba, a member of the Palestinian intelligence services, injured two Israelis<\/a>, including a soldier, at Hizme checkpoint, close to Jerusalem.<\/p>\n Israel responded to Sukari\u2019s attack by briefly locking down<\/a> Ramallah, the Palestinians\u2019 effective economic and political capital, in what appeared to be a policy of collective punishment.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n