Illusion of calm shattered
, עודכן
The illusion of tense calm across Israel was shattered on Thursday, when two terrorist attacks claimed the lives of three Israelis, one American Jew, and one Palestinian, raising concerns that the current wave of terrorism is rising again.
The first attack, a stabbing at an improvised synagogue in a commercial building in southern Tel Aviv, was reminiscent of the 2014 synagogue stabbing in Jerusalem's Har Nof neighborhood, and once again we were exposed to the gruesome sight of blood-drenched religious articles.
As in many of the other terrorist attacks of the past weeks, it was swift actions by civilians that prevented a larger number of casualties. But unlike previous attackers, the terrorist here was a married Palestinian man, a father with a legal work permit.
This was the first time in a long time that a Palestinian legally in Israel has carried out a terrorist attack. Israel has so far refrained from imposing a closure on the West Bank, to avoid collectively punishing the Palestinians, believing that employed Palestinians, who have something to lose, will not resort to violence.
The defense establishment still prefers to maintain this policy, and currently has no plans to change the guidelines by which work permits are issued to Palestinians. But should other Palestinians who have entered Israel legally carry out terrorist attacks, it would mandate a policy change, including stricter searches of those coming and going through the checkpoints, as well as revoking some of the permits.
The second attack, in Gush Etzion, was another marker in a growing trend, one seeing terrorists graduate from knives to firearms.
Defense officials say that they have yet to detect links between the shooting attacks of the past few weeks and known terrorist organizations, and they are believed to be a random cluster of incidents by individuals who managed to get their hands on firearms and set out to murder Israelis.
Still, policy changes may become inevitable: Nearly all recent attacks were carried out on roads and highways shared by Israelis and Palestinians, and if the situation worsens, Israel will have no choice but to instigate some sort of highway separation.
While such a move is endorsed and would be welcomed by the settlers across Judea and Samaria, the defense establishment opposes it not only because it will evoke scathing international criticism, but because it would make it easy for terrorists to spot and target Israeli vehicles.
Thursday was the bloodiest day since the recent surge of violence began, and both terrorists responsible came from Hebron, which has become the main "exporter" of attacks in recent weeks.
The military and Shin Bet security agency are focusing their operational and intelligence efforts in the Hebron sector, but with only partial success. Defense officials believe the current wave of terrorism is far from waning, and the military will have to keep large forces deployed across Judea and Samaria, particularly in the Hebron sector.
Despite the death toll, Israel is still likely to avoid taking any drastic steps on the ground. This decision stems from several reasons, including U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry's scheduled visit next Tuesday, and the concern that such steps might encourage the well-trained and heavily armed Tanzim, one of the Fatah's military wings, to join the circle of violence. But it also stems from the desire to avoid attracting global attention at a time when it is focused on the war on Islamic State.
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