On March 10, 2024, the Israel Security Agency (ISA) and the Israel Police announced that they had uncovered a terrorist network of Israeli Arabs from the North, which planned, in coordination with Hamas, to carry out attacks in Israel. As part of the investigation, in the past few months, 13 suspected members have been arrested, and weapons have been uncovered. One of the suspects had been in contact with Hamas in the Gaza Strip, and several detainees had been involved in violence during the Guardian of the Walls operation in 2021. Indictments will now be filed. According to the ISA, “this is a serious activity by Israeli citizens who planned terrorist attacks with Hamas’s involvement, which could potentially harm the normative majority within Arab society.”
This is a serious incident, which indicates once again the existence of an extremist ideological infrastructure in Arab society, however small, that is linked to external terrorist elements and has real potential for carrying out terrorist acts against the state and Jews in Israel. In this context, we note that:
a. Terrorist activity by Arab citizens against Jews, especially during this sensitive period of war against Hamas and even more so during Ramadan, will not only cause direct and serious damage but could also significantly disrupt the sensitive fabric of relations between the Jewish majority and the Arab minority, which overall has been careful to maintain restraint since the beginning of the war.
b. Arab terrorism could lead to a widespread escalation of violence between extremists on both sides, to the point of opening another front of internal conflict. Such a scenario is a stated ambition of Hamas, and it should be avoided as much as possible.
c. Arab leaders and opinion makers have a significant role in condemning and denouncing any phenomenon of terrorism in Arab society. Their voice must be heard unequivocally.
d. Preventing and countering terrorism are the responsibility of the ISA and the Israel Police. Their activity against terrorism is vital and successful, although it is not entirely foolproof. The counter efforts, based on intelligence, presence, and deterrence, must be particularly powerful under the current circumstances, even if it appears that this cell, whose disclosure likely already took place a while ago, is not necessarily related to Ramadan.
In any case, prevention efforts should be supported by broad cognitive public campaigns, by Arabs and Jews alike, with the aim of recognizing the security and social necessity of mutual restraint on both sides. The main responsibility lies with the government, which is required to implement short and long-term initiatives, such as implementing the five-year plans for the development of Arab society, while avoiding unnecessary provocations. At the same time, mobilizing community leaders, both Arabs and Jews, is also necessary to create an atmosphere of reconciliation and mutual integration. In the long run, these efforts will bear no less fruit than the prevention efforts and countermeasures.
On March 10, 2024, the Israel Security Agency (ISA) and the Israel Police announced that they had uncovered a terrorist network of Israeli Arabs from the North, which planned, in coordination with Hamas, to carry out attacks in Israel. As part of the investigation, in the past few months, 13 suspected members have been arrested, and weapons have been uncovered. One of the suspects had been in contact with Hamas in the Gaza Strip, and several detainees had been involved in violence during the Guardian of the Walls operation in 2021. Indictments will now be filed. According to the ISA, “this is a serious activity by Israeli citizens who planned terrorist attacks with Hamas’s involvement, which could potentially harm the normative majority within Arab society.”
This is a serious incident, which indicates once again the existence of an extremist ideological infrastructure in Arab society, however small, that is linked to external terrorist elements and has real potential for carrying out terrorist acts against the state and Jews in Israel. In this context, we note that:
a. Terrorist activity by Arab citizens against Jews, especially during this sensitive period of war against Hamas and even more so during Ramadan, will not only cause direct and serious damage but could also significantly disrupt the sensitive fabric of relations between the Jewish majority and the Arab minority, which overall has been careful to maintain restraint since the beginning of the war.
b. Arab terrorism could lead to a widespread escalation of violence between extremists on both sides, to the point of opening another front of internal conflict. Such a scenario is a stated ambition of Hamas, and it should be avoided as much as possible.
c. Arab leaders and opinion makers have a significant role in condemning and denouncing any phenomenon of terrorism in Arab society. Their voice must be heard unequivocally.
d. Preventing and countering terrorism are the responsibility of the ISA and the Israel Police. Their activity against terrorism is vital and successful, although it is not entirely foolproof. The counter efforts, based on intelligence, presence, and deterrence, must be particularly powerful under the current circumstances, even if it appears that this cell, whose disclosure likely already took place a while ago, is not necessarily related to Ramadan.
In any case, prevention efforts should be supported by broad cognitive public campaigns, by Arabs and Jews alike, with the aim of recognizing the security and social necessity of mutual restraint on both sides. The main responsibility lies with the government, which is required to implement short and long-term initiatives, such as implementing the five-year plans for the development of Arab society, while avoiding unnecessary provocations. At the same time, mobilizing community leaders, both Arabs and Jews, is also necessary to create an atmosphere of reconciliation and mutual integration. In the long run, these efforts will bear no less fruit than the prevention efforts and countermeasures.