Intelligence suggests a multi-phase plan to infiltrate at least 15 Israeli communities simultaneously using mobilized regional proxies.
By Hezy Laing
Recent IDF operations and intelligence seizures in early 2026 have brought to light sophisticated strategic documents detailing coordinated efforts to destabilize Israeli control in Judea and Samaria.
While historical focus often rested on the Palestinian Authority’s “Grand Plan” of 2021—a strategy to establish de facto sovereignty in Area C through thousands of illegal construction projects funded by European and Arab donors—newly seized materials from Hamas headquarters in Gaza reveal a much more violent operational intent.
These documents, discovered during the ongoing military campaign, indicate that Hamas senior leadership, including figures associated with Yahya Sinwar, viewed Judea and Samaria as the “central arena” for a follow-up to the October 7, 2023, massacres.
The intelligence suggests a multi-phase plan to infiltrate at least fifteen Israeli communities simultaneously using “stay-behind” cells and mobilized regional proxies.
Unlike the PA’s bureaucratic land grab, this military blueprint focused on mass casualty events and the seizure of critical infrastructure to sever access roads.
In response to these revelations, Defense Minister Israel Katz issued a directive in late 2025 for the IDF Central Command to shift from a defensive posture to “persistent offensive operations.”
This led to the “Roaring Lion” military drills in January 2026, which specifically simulated an organized multi-front infiltration from the Samarian hills.
Furthermore, the IDF has established a dedicated “target bank” for the region, identifying over 450 strategic locations used for weapons manufacturing and command, many of which are situated within volatile refugee camps like Jenin and Tulkarm.
Israeli military experts note that the threat is exacerbated by Hezbollah’s “Conquer the Galilee” strategy, which intelligence suggests was meant to be synchronized with a Judean uprising.
By early 2026, the IDF had increased its troop presence in the Jordan Valley and Central Command by approximately 25% to counter these specific threats.
These documented plans confirm that the regional struggle has shifted from localized terror to a high-level strategic attempt to collapse Israeli civil and military governance in the heartland of the country.
But critics argue that the IDF has failed to proactively address the massive proliferation of illegal Arab weaponry within Judea and Samaria population centers, estimated by some security analysts at hundreds of thousands of firearms.
Despite recurring operations in Jenin and Nablus, critics contend these efforts are localized “mowing the grass” rather than a comprehensive disarmament strategy.
They point to the persistent flow of Iranian-funded smuggling as evidence of a systemic failure.
This hesitation to conduct large-scale, door-to-door confiscations is often blamed on political reluctance to risk a wider escalation, leaving Israeli civilians in Judea and Samaria vulnerable to organized infiltration threats.
