Strategic Assessment

This article examines the economic element at the root of the current wave of terror, positing a link between the socio-economic changes that have taken place in East Jerusalem neighborhoods since the security fence was constructed and the participation of the local populations in the cycle of violence. The negative economic consequences of the security fence, together with the poor educational infrastructure and limited employment opportunities of East Jerusalem neighborhoods, block any possibility of educational, occupational, or personal development among the population. Both the sense of frustration and the ongoing neglect caused by these impediments have penetrated the mindset of the local youth, who feel that in the current reality they have “nothing left to lose.” Addressing this issue constructively requires substantive improvements in the educational and employment infrastructure in these neighborhoods. Such changes will be able to instill some hope in the population that local residents will have the opportunity to make a respectable living. This in turn creates a significant cost for participation in the cycle of violence.