Israel is Beyond the “Moment of Truth”: The Escalation of Palestinian Terrorism | INSS
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Home Posts Israel is Beyond the “Moment of Truth”: The Escalation of Palestinian Terrorism

Israel is Beyond the “Moment of Truth”: The Escalation of Palestinian Terrorism
Kobi Michael
3 September, 2023
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The month of August saw continued escalation of terror in the West Bank, Jerusalem, and Israel. The Hamas leadership (Saleh al-Arouri from Beirut and Hamas leaders from Gaza) continues to encourage Palestinian terrorism in the West Bank and to develop the terrorist infrastructure, including explosives laboratories and weapons smuggling (also with Iranian and Hezbollah assistance), and focus on the development of the terrorist infrastructure in southern Lebanon (with the coordination and assistance of Iran and Hezbollah). At the same time, the Palestinian Authority, which since the end of Operation Home and Garden in Jenin has begun to act with greater determination both in the Jenin region, but mainly in Nablus, Tulkarm, Qalqilya, and Ramallah, has been drawn into clashes with Palestinian youths and is seen on the Palestinian street as “collaborating with the Israeli occupation".

The scope of IDF activity in the Palestinian cities, the number of Palestinian detainees and casualties, and the massive intelligence effort are all growing. Yet alongside many impressive operations to foil terrorist activity and infrastructures, the scope of Palestinian terrorism has expanded, and continues to take a toll on Israeli citizens in the West Bank and in Israel. These trends point to the development of the terrorist system engulfing Israel since March 2022, and even more so since May 2022 with the start of Operation Break the Wave. What was mistakenly conceived as a terrorist wave did not break, and quickly developed into an expanding terror system that rests on a psychological infrastructure grounded in the consciousness of the armed struggle planted in the hearts of the young Palestinians – seared in them is the consciousness of intifada.

Alongside these, and as if influenced by the weak governance of the Palestinian Authority, Israeli governance regarding Jewish violence against Palestinians has also weakened. Worse still, this violence has in part been met by politicians who instead of denouncing it, choose to explain it, justify it, and censure IDF commanders and the head of the Israel Security Agency. Although the Palestinians do not need any justification to resort terror against Jews – they have enough reasons of their own, which we have already discussed – the policy of Israeli containment, or alternatively, the lack of the required determination and the political support needed for the required determination, add fuel to the growing fire of terrorism.

Israel is already beyond the “moment of truth.” The comfort zone that Israel has to date granted the Hamas leadership in the Gaza Strip and beyond is exacting an intolerable toll. Although Hamas is not the only generator of the terrorist system confronting Israel, it is certainly a significant and central element in driving and expanding this terrorist system. I believe Israel is required to take a significant military move that severely damages Hamas’s military infrastructure in the Gaza Strip. The military infrastructure is the source of Hamas's political power, and without it, Hamas will be greatly weakened. At the same time, there is no real or long-term validity to a military campaign in the Gaza Strip without a political goal and a broader and more significant political context, which the military campaign is supposed to serve. The context lies in the need to stabilize the Palestinian Authority and strengthen it in a way that allows its integration into the normalization process with Saudi Arabia and the design of the regional architecture.

Focusing on military efforts alone, which would result in a type of war of attrition, could moderate the extent and intensity of terrorism for limited periods of time, but will not curb it significantly or over time. In the absence of an ordered political idea, Israel will find itself in an ongoing and  enervating military campaign. That is precisely the objective of the Palestinian terror system and what is also sought by Iran, which backs up the terror system and cultivates the Palestinian front as another active front against Israel among the other fronts it operates. The war of attrition is not the right ballpark for Israel in general, and at this time in particular.

Topics: Israeli-Palestinian Relations
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    • Topics
      • Israel and the Global Powers
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      • Russia
      • Europe
      • Iran and the Shi'ite Axis
      • Iran
      • Lebanon and Hezbollah
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      • Yemen and the Houthi Movement
      • Iraq and the Iraqi Shiite Militias
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