I had the same problem on my 94 grand cherokee! Try pushing in hard near the latch on the tailgate on the outside then pulling it open. I tried everything before stumbling on to this solution!! Lube up the latch and you should be fine.
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1997 grand cherokee tailgate won't open
I have the same problem with my 1995 Grand Cherokee Laredo. Interestingly it only fails in warm weather. In the cold winter months it opens just fine. I recently decided to remove the inside panel to see what was going on. By the way, with the inside panel removed you can operate the latch from the inside and the door will open. It appears that the latch mechanism can be adjusted (it's a threaded fitting) to tighten up the travel on the latch. I haven't done this yet because we're in cold weather here (if it ain't broke don't fix it). But I'll be ready for springtime!
Good luck.
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