Chevron Sheikhs Propose PA Breakoff, Joining Abraham Accords

A group of influential Chevron sheikhs has put forth a proposal to secede from the Palestinian Authority, establish a local emirate, and pursue peace with Israel under the framework of the Abraham Accords. The sheiks would recognize Israel as a Jewish state; something the rivaling Palestinian Authority has never agreed to do.

The initiative, led by Sheikh Wadee’ al-Jaabari, has been developed in coordination with Israeli Economy Minister Nir Barkat but faces significant opposition from within the Palestinian community and skepticism from Israel’s security establishment.

In a letter addressed to Barkat for presentation to Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, Sheikh Jaabari and four other leading Chevron sheikhs have pledged to recognize Israel as a Jewish state, a step the Palestinian Authority has long resisted. “We want cooperation with Israel,” said Sheikh Jaabari. “We want coexistence.”
The sheikhs’ letter outlines a plan for mutual recognition: “The Emirate of Chevron shall recognize the State of Israel as the nation state of the Jewish people, and the State of Israel shall recognize the Emirate of Chevron as the Representative of the Arab residents in the Chevron District.”

The group of sheikhs lead a majority of Palestinians in the region. The first group comprises eight major sheikhs, representing an estimated 204,000 residents. A second group of 13 additional sheikhs leads another 350,000 people. Combined, these groups account for over 550,000 residents, a majority of the area’s more than 700,000 inhabitants. An Israeli associate of Sheikh Jaabari witnessed both groups swearing allegiance to him, the Wall Street Journal reported. The involved clan members include many local Palestinian Authority personnel, who the sheikhs expect to align with their families.

The proposal seeks to replace the Oslo Accords, which the sheikhs claim “only brought damage, death, economic disaster and destruction.” They argue the 1990s agreements installed a “corrupt Palestinian Authority, instead of recognizing the traditional, authentic local leadership” of the clans.

“I plan to cut off the PA,” Sheikh Jaabari stated. “It doesn’t represent the Palestinians.” He lamented the PLO’s rule, brought in from exile in Tunisia, saying, “The only thing you”—the PLO—“know about Chevron is collecting taxes.” Other sheikhs interviewed anonymously were more blunt. “The PLO called itself a liberation movement. But once they got control, they act only to steal the money of the people,” one said. “They don’t have the right to represent us—not them and not Hamas, only we ourselves.”

The plan includes economic incentives, proposing an initial trial period for 1,000 workers from Chevron to be employed in Israel, with a potential increase to 50,000. The sheikhs pledge “zero tolerance” for terrorism, contrasting their stance with the Palestinian Authority’s policy of making payments to terrorists. A document elaborating on the plan also details the creation of a joint economic zone of over 1,000 acres near the security fence between Chevron and Israel.

Barkat, a former mayor of Jerusalem, has met with the sheikhs over a dozen times since February and championed the initiative as a necessary shift in strategy. “The old peace process failed, so ‘new thinking is needed’,” Barkat said. He claims broad support for the idea in Israel, asking, “Who in Israel is going to say no?”

A senior Israeli source indicated to the Wall Street Journal that Prime Minister Netanyahu is “supportive but cautious.”
The intellectual framework for the proposal is the “emirates solution,” developed by Mordechai Kedar, a scholar at Israel’s Bar-Ilan University.

Kedar argues that successful Arab states are often controlled by single families, and that basing a political structure on the powerful, traditional clans of West Bank cities like Chevron is a more stable model. “Chevron will be the test case for this idea of the emirates,” Kedar said.

Despite this backing, the plan has been met with significant resistance. Within Israel, the security establishment has raised alarms. Retired Maj. Gen. Gadi Shamni, a former head of IDF Central Command, warned of chaos. “How do you deal with dozens of different families, each of them armed, each under its own control?” he asked. “It would be a mess, a disaster.” The Shin Bet security agency reportedly views the Palestinian Authority as a critical partner in combating terrorism and has internally opposed the sheikhs’ plan.

Faced with criticism that his vision is a betrayal, Sheikh Jaabari is resolute. “The betrayal was done in Oslo. You forgot, but I remember—33 years of it,” he said, citing what he described as a history of false promises and poverty. “I believe in my path. There will be obstacles, but if we confront a rock, we will have iron to break it.”