January13, 2007:
Israeli counter-terrorism officials explain that a major reason for
the continued drop in Palestinian terrorist attacks inside Israel (only two
last year, while killed eleven people), has been the destruction of the
terrorist organizations that plan and carry out these attacks. In the past
year, Israeli counter terror operations in the West Bank resulted in the arrest
of 187 Palestinians who were involved in terrorist activities, with another 130
killed. One Islamic Jahad group, which operated in the northern West Bank, was
basically destroyed last year, with the loss of 33 of 38 members (killed or arrested.)
This group had been responsible for several successful attacks in Israel.
During
2006, two Israeli soldiers and six civilians were killed in the West Bank,
which is the result of good intelligence, and the careful planning of
operations. The Israelis have a large informer network in the West Bank, and
several hundred police commandos selected for their ability to pass as
Palestinians (the commandos speak Arabic, and are from families who once lived
in Arab countries, but were forced to flee by Islamic radicals.)
The
damage done to West Bank terrorist groups has been so extensive that most of
the remaining cells spend a disproportionate amount of their time avoiding the
attention of the Israeli police. Because of this, more terrorists from Gaza are
showing up, as well as aid from Hizbollah in Lebanon. The Gaza terrorists can
leave via Egypt, and enter the West Bank via Jordan. Hizbollah operatives also
use the Jordan route. Border security with Jordan is tight, but not perfect.
Attempts to smuggle weapons and cash are often foiled, but a lot of this stuff
does get through.
However,
the basic Israeli tactic, of detecting, and going after, the terrorist cells
that recruit, train, equip and guide (into Israel) the suicide bombers, has
proved highly effective. It takes quite a bit of organization and skill to get
a suicide bomber into Israel, and if you keep the terrorist groups in disarray,
and constantly watching their backs, fewer bombs go off inside Israel.