Again, as we go to press with news of a homicide bombing in Jerusalem that has claimed at least 16 lives, Israelis and Jews everywhere mourn. And again we look not only for solace, but also for a way to understand the recent renewal of violence following so closely on the formal acceptance of the “road map’ to peace at the Aqaba summit on June 4.
Nir Barkin, community shaliach, offered some insight to us on Wednesday morning: “Let’s not forget that since President Bush, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas and Jordan’s King Abdullah met in Aqaba, there have been scores of attempts to attack civilians and soldiers. Dozens of them were revealed in time, and the Israeli security services managed to stop terrorists before they perpetuated the devil’s work.”
“Let’s not fool ourselves,” Barkin continued, “by thinking that Wednesday morning’s terrorist attack in Jerusalem is a result of any Israeli attempt to put an end to the ongoing threat Israelis have lived under for so long.”
Barkin was referring to Israel’s attempted assassination of Hamas official Abdel Aziz Rantisi in Gaza on Tuesday, which left Rantisi moderately wounded and vowing revenge. Hamas has claimed responsibility for Wednesday’s Jerusalem attack, which followed an unprecedented joint attack on Sunday by Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the Al-Aksa Brigade that killed four Israeli soldiers serving in the Gaza Strip.
“Planning a terrorist attack takes months, and the actual operation must begin days before the homicide bomber pulls the trigger,” explained Barkin. “Wednesday’s attack in Jerusalem was already in place when Abbas spoke in Jordan last week.”
Though Israeli intelligence sources state that a terrorist attack such as Wednesday’s requires three or four days’ preparation, many Israelis question the timing of the attack on Rantisi.
In an editorial Wednesday in the Israeli daily Yediot Achronot, Eitan Haber described Rantisi as “deserving death,” but argued that “the attempt on Rantisi’s life in Gaza, against the background of the summit and messages of peace, was an error in judgment at best, and an attempt to wreck the first step in the thousand-mile journey to peace at worst.”
Israeli analysts have also suggested that the assassination attempt was Sharon’s way of trying to balance the images of outposts being torn down, and of appeasing the angry “boos” resounding from hardliners in his Likud party and from settlers throughout the West Bank.
Sharon’s staff members believe that the strike was justified and designed to thwart an impending wave of terror attacks. According to the Israeli daily Ha’aretz, Sharon ordered aides to relay intelligence to U.S. officials to prove that Rantisi has been planning attacks on Israelis.
Ha’aretz reported: “‘This information is intended to show that Rantisi was not just a ticking bomb but a factory of ticking bombs,’ a senior Israeli security source said.”
Here in the U.S., as we grieve anew for the loss of life and as we understand Israel’s right to defend itself against terror, we are concerned that Israel’s actions this week in Gaza offer the world yet another opportunity to unfairly equate the incessant fight against terror with the murderous loss of innocent life on Israel’s streets.
What is clear is that Mahmoud Abbas must stop, rather than try to negotiate with, Hamas and other terrorist groups whose avowed purpose is to destroy Israel.
“The ‘road map’ can only be implemented when the Palestinians gain control over terrorist groups, only when violence halts, only when trust is built between the two peoples,” said Barkin.
We can only hope that between the time these words are written on Wednesday and their publication on Friday, restraint will take hold and the two peoples can resume their long journey toward peace.
Loading ...