Another Jewish family was destroyed this morning when 16-year old Aviad Mantsur died as a result of the injuries he sustained in a Palestinian terror attack on Friday afternoon. His friend, 17-year old Avichai Levy, was also slain in the assault.

All weekend long, Aviad had struggled for his life, as his father prayed for a miracle – but it was to no avail.

The government has been silent, the army has done nothing, and all that is left from this horrific event are the tears of two families left to mourn their loved ones.

For weeks, opponents of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s plan to withdraw from Gaza had warned that it would lead to an upsurge in Palestinian terror. Time after time, they cautioned that yielding to the terrorists would only embolden them, leading them to expand their operations and intensify their efforts to kill Jews.

And that is precisely what has happened.

If the terrorists are afraid of a possible Israeli military reaction, they certainly aren’t showing it. Islamic Jihad and Fatah both openly took responsibility for this outrage, as though they have no reason in the world to fear any reprisal.

And that is because they don’t – for, despite the recent increase in anti-Israel attacks, the government has done little to change its overall counter-terror policy. Other than renewing occasional pinpoint strikes against senior Islamic Jihad leaders, no other significant steps have been taken.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it here again: the only way to eliminate terrorism is to eliminate the terrorists. Unless and until Israel begins to wage war on terror with unrelenting determination, the bloodshed will unfortunately only continue.