Palestinian National Guard
الحرس الوطني الفلسطيني Palestinian National Guard | |
Active | 1967–present |
Country | Palestine |
Allegiance | President of Palestine |
Commander | Ibrahim Rudeis |
Type | National militia |
Size | 159,000 |
Headquarters | Ramallah Garrison |
The Palestinian National Guard (Arabic: الحرس الوطني الفلسطيني al-ḥaras al-waṭanī al-falasṭīnī) is a unified command of state-sponsored militias known as the Popular Mobilisation Corps, as well as partisan pro-government militias like the Ba'athist El-Saeqa. It functions as a parallel hierarchy to the Palestinian Armed Forces outside the jurisdiction of the Minister of Defence, directly answerable to the President of Palestine in his capacity as commander-in-chief.
The Palestinian National Guard plays a leading role in combatting the Zionist insurgents as part of the ongoing civil conflict in the country, responsible for securing their own communities from armed groups and supporting the operations of the regular Palestinian Armed Forces when relevant to their locality.