Hundreds of illegal weapons like this one have been seized by Israel this year instead of reaching terrorists. Photo courtesy of ISA.
The current Palestinian terror wave that started in 2015 has involved knife attacks, shootings, bombings and more, but Israel’s security forces may be stemming the tide on the violence. The IDF Blog reported last week that there has been a 30% decrease in terror attacks in the past 5 months, and it cited a range of measures taken by the security forces to prevent terror before it happens.
The numbers of terror attacks month-by-month are reported by the Israel Security Agency on their website, and the trend is down from the start of the year. In January and February, the ISA reported that including firebomb attacks, there were 169 and 155 total attacks respectively. But May saw the lowest numbers of the year to that point at 101 attacks, while the latest data from June saw that month’s numbers increase only slightly to 103 attacks—still more than four dozen fewer incidents than at the beginning of the year. A key step towards cutting down the terrorism is to intercept weapons used by terrorists, according to the IDF Blog.
To that end, the IDF Blog said that in 2016 more than 235 illegal guns have been apprehended in Judea and Samaria. Considering the cost of such weapons can run as high as $3,800, the IDF Blog noted that the weapons seizures are “mitigating Israeli casualties and helping stop terror at its source.”
Similarly, 27 weapons manufacturing facilities have been seized this year, and in late 2015 an explosives lab was uncovered. Attempts to smuggle dozens of illegal guns or cash for terror cells have also been stopped.
In the end, vigilance is key. On Sunday, Israel Police Spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said on his Twitter feed that an “explosive device” was found and neutralized by bomb disposal experts outside the holy place of Rachel’s Tomb. Thankfully, no damage was caused.
Since the latter half of last year, intercepting terror attacks has become an imperative for Israel—but based on the last five months, it looks like the efforts are working.
(By Joshua Spurlock, www.themideastupdate.com, August 7, 2016)