Based on recommendations of various security organs, and in light of American pressure, the IDF has cut back the number of anti-terrorism checkpoints in Judea/Samaria by 60% since last year.
The spokesman for the Coordinator of Government Operations in the Territories (CGOT) says that terrorism is down, though not necessarily the motivation for terrorism: “In the past two weeks, Palestinian Authority forces, which have been doing a better job of fighting terror groups, liquidated two such cells. They also have been making arrests, especially of Hamas men in Jenin and also recently found an arms cache in a mosque in Kalkilya.”
The IDF, as well, continues to make nightly arrests of terrorists and suspects throughout Judea and Samaria. Six suspects were arrested on Monday night.
Gershon Mesika, who heads the Shomron Regional Council where many of the removed checkpoints were situated, sees the picture quite differently. “These wanton, direction-less security policies are dangerous and can lead to the shedding of Jewish blood. These decisions are made because of political considerations, not security – ask the officers in the field, they’ll tell you they’re against removing the checkpoints – and we hold Defense Minister Barak personally responsible for what is liable to happen.”
BMC Cards for Businessmen
Another major change for the Arab population in Judea and Samaria has been the introduction of the BMC – the Businessman Card – which operates in a similar manner to the VIP card issued to senior Palestinian Authority officials. The CGOT spokesman explained to Israel National News that the BMC enables businessmen who have business ties with Israel or with other countries to travel freely into pre-1967 Israel. “However,” he said, “the BMC is issued only to someone who can prove, to the satisfaction of the police, General Security Service and other security organs – and often Israel’s commerce bureau as well – that not only is he not a security risk, but that he has a genuine business that requires him to pass over into [pre-'67] Israel. Merely running a grocery or even a quarry is not enough… He must prove why he needs to cross into Israel. There are many requests that are rejected.”
The spokesman did not provide exact numbers of BMC’s issued, but emphasized that it is a significant easing of security restrictions on the PA population. “The BMC is issued only to an individual, and not to his entire family,” the spokesman said, “though there can be ramifications: If a man’s son is a security risk, it might block his father from receiving the card, whereas if someone already has a card, it might ease the way for his family to receive a permit to cross over.”
Council head Mesika acknowledges that there has been a drop in terrorism, “but it’s because the IDF worked hard – but now they’re letting up... The improvement is not because of the PA forces; I trust them like I trust a viper.”
“The desire to murder Jews is still there,” Mesika said. “Just a few weeks ago, terrorists murdered two policemen in the Jordan Valley, and there was the shooting outside Kokhav HaShachar. Removing the checkpoints is liable to lead to bloodshed.”
Haaretz reports that there are today 16 manned checkpoints in all of Judea and Samaria, compared with 43 last July. The paper quotes PA Arabs as being pleased with the new situation, cutting down their travel time between cities.