TEHRAN- For the third day in a row, Israeli settlers, illegally squatting on Palestinian land, have stormed the al-Aqsa Mosque but will the provocation slow down the Palestinian struggle for freedom in the occupied West Bank?

The dozens of settlers, protected by the occupation forces, raided the third holiest Muslim site in different groups through its Maghariba Gate and took a tour of the courtyards, where they listened to Rabbis giving lectures.

This is while the Israeli regime forces, like the two previous days, imposed tight restrictions on Palestinian worshipers' access to the Mosque’s entrances and gates.

Israel uses this period, under the pretext of the Jewish new year, to expand its atrocities against the Palestinian people, in particular, around the holy al-Aqsa Mosque.

Reports have emerged of squatters going on the rampage in the cities across the West Bank assaulting Palestinians, damaging their cars, and stealing their crop. In many cases, these settlers are armed and again shielded by the regime's military forces.

Meanwhile, as media attention is focused on other parts of the world, the occupying regime, in the face of an unprecedented armed struggle, is expanding its illegal settlement activity and demolishing Palestinian homes at the same time.

The Hamas Movement, based in the besieged Gaza Strip, has called on the Palestinians to increase their resistance against the occupation and clash with its forces and settlers with all available means in response to its settlement practices.  

Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum said the Israeli occupation put up fencing around a large swath of land at a village in the Jordan Valley with the aim of seizing it for settlement projects.

Barhoum expressed his belief that “the occupation state’s persistence in its displacement and ethnic cleansing practices against the Palestinian people would not succeed in obliterating the historic identity of their land and dissuade them from upholding their struggle to achieve their aspirations for liberation and return.”

This month a UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs report documented the Israeli authorities demolishing or seizing 44 Palestinian structures, including homes in the occupied territories of the West Bank and al-Quds from August 30 and September 4, 2022.

“Some 35 of the structures were in Area C, including 19 structures seized without warning, which prevented the ability of owners to object in advance. Nine other structures were demolished in east Jerusalem (al-Quds), including five that were destroyed by their owners following the issuance of demolition orders, to avoid paying fines when the structure is demolished by Israeli authorities.”

“Since the beginning of 2022, 11 homes have been demolished on punitive grounds, compared with three in all of 2021 and seven in 2020,” the report pointed out.

It comes at a time when Israel is facing an armed Palestinian resistance this year and it knows quite well that those resisting are more courageous and daring to confront the occupation forces. And also that they fight to the last shot, refuse to surrender, and do not fear death when carrying out guerrilla operations in the occupied West Bank and the Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories since 1948.

The events of the Palestinian resistance in the occupied West Bank have recorded a remarkable hike since the beginning of 2022. The numbers and statistics indicated a record increase in resistance operations, in its many forms, especially the lone wolf armed operations against the enemy forces that storm Palestinian cities, towns, and villages.

Israel has intensified its military invasions and arrest campaigns across the occupied territories especially in the northern West Bank and more specifically the areas of Jenin, the home of the resistance, and Nablus.

The regime relied on its stubborn military philosophy to try and permanently drain the capabilities of the resistance so that it gradually erodes the factors that drive the survival of the rebellion. It tried to finish it off without the need for a large-scale military operation similar to that in 2002, knowing such an operation will see other fronts rise as well.

However, despite all the military attempts, the Israeli army admits that it is finding it difficult to stop the armed operations, especially the armed operations throughout the occupied West Bank. All the months of military action across the spring and summer have turned out to be a failed bid to bring this new phenomenon under control.

On the other hand, many analysts, say Israeli rulers should be prepared for the West Bank resistance to intensify further in the coming days, weeks, and months, especially as their settlers flock to desecrate the courtyards of al-Aqsa Mosque and in the lead-up to the Israeli elections in November.

Israel perhaps realizes that the Palestinian arenas have become more interconnected since the Sword of al-Quds battle in May 2021; from the guerrilla operations inside the Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories to the armed operations in the occupied West Bank and al-Quds to the ever-growing missile arsenal of the Gaza based resistance groups. 

The regime could very likely be facing armed resistance on multiple fronts as the Israeli ethnic cleansing campaign backfires and pushes the Palestinian national issue to be a priority for Palestinian youth.

In the West Bank, the development of the combat tactics by Palestinian youth has not been lost on the Israelis as well as the readiness by Palestinians to confront Israeli arrests with the rule of not surrendering until the last Israeli bullet or martyrdom.
On the other hand, the regime can go on to continue ignoring the consequences of its occupation of the Palestinian's indigenous land and carry on with the Judaization of Islamic and Christian sanctities, its aggression and crimes against the Palestinian people and continue to rob the Palestinian people of their rights and freedom. 
The arrogance of Israeli leaders means they would not bother to link their criminal practices with the Palestinian people defending themselves through all available and legitimate means. Despite the clarity of the enemy's crimes, its media does not link Palestinian self-defense with the practices of the occupation and its aggression. 

In most cases, this neglect will continue until the price of the occupation increases and depletes its military, forcing it to acknowledge and submit to the Palestinian will, which has been described by Palestinian supporters as the will of every free person on this planet.
And every Palestinian youth has become a potential resistance operation. The struggle for freedom is gaining popularity on social media with videos doing the rounds across the occupied West Bank.

It is clear that all Israeli options to confront the resistance are complex and difficult, and carry with them many calculations. Using settlers to attack and desecrate will not help the apartheid occupation forces and looks set to backfire as well.
After failing to be deterred by Israeli military action in the West Bank, the regime provocations at al-Aqsa Mosque, settler violence, the settlement expansion, and the demolitions are not going to change the determination of the Palestinian resistance.

There is a high possibility that Israel will soon find itself in a dilemma of greatly unifying the Palestinians resisting its occupation across the West Bank and the Gaza Strip and making their national cause stronger, in a similar way to the Sword of al-Quds battle last year.