Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer convened a meeting of the leaders of Israel’s security forces following the attack yesterday. They decided, as an immediate response, to tighten curfews around PLO-controlled towns. However, Arutz-7 has learned that despite yesterday's attack, the IDF still plans to withdraw its forces from Hevron later on this week as scheduled; see below.
Israeli officials say that Israel will carry out a pinpoint response to yesterday’s attack at the right time and place. Despite media reports to the contrary, Minister Ben-Eliezer said today that the U.S. is not pressuring Israel to refrain from taking action against those responsible.
The terrorists who detonated the carbomb yesterday were 18 and 19 years old residents of Jenin. Both Jenin and Tul Karem were not under curfew of late, and Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Moshe Yaalon acknowledged today that the easing of restrictions for Arab residents of the PA made it easier for the murderers to slip into pre-1967 Israel.
Gen. Yaalon, appearing before the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee today, said that there were no less than 40 credible serious intelligence warnings of planned attacks in the past two weeks, and that seven major attacks were thwarted over the past ten days. Five human bombs were arrested on their way to attacks, and two of them were killed. He said that the terrorists' motivation to perpetrate attacks remains high.
Yaalon further said that the recent olive-picking violence would be investigated. A mob of Arabs attacked Jews yesterday near Shilo, burning fields in the process, amidst accusations that Jews had attacked them. Four Jewish youths, on the other hand, were arrested yesterday near Shechem on charges of stealing olives from Arab fields. The army briefly forbade Arabs in the PA from picking olives today, for fear of further violence between them and neighboring Jewish residents. The ban was lifted this afternoon, and soldiers will be posted at olive-picking sites instead.
Israeli officials say that Israel will carry out a pinpoint response to yesterday’s attack at the right time and place. Despite media reports to the contrary, Minister Ben-Eliezer said today that the U.S. is not pressuring Israel to refrain from taking action against those responsible.
The terrorists who detonated the carbomb yesterday were 18 and 19 years old residents of Jenin. Both Jenin and Tul Karem were not under curfew of late, and Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Moshe Yaalon acknowledged today that the easing of restrictions for Arab residents of the PA made it easier for the murderers to slip into pre-1967 Israel.
Gen. Yaalon, appearing before the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee today, said that there were no less than 40 credible serious intelligence warnings of planned attacks in the past two weeks, and that seven major attacks were thwarted over the past ten days. Five human bombs were arrested on their way to attacks, and two of them were killed. He said that the terrorists' motivation to perpetrate attacks remains high.
Yaalon further said that the recent olive-picking violence would be investigated. A mob of Arabs attacked Jews yesterday near Shilo, burning fields in the process, amidst accusations that Jews had attacked them. Four Jewish youths, on the other hand, were arrested yesterday near Shechem on charges of stealing olives from Arab fields. The army briefly forbade Arabs in the PA from picking olives today, for fear of further violence between them and neighboring Jewish residents. The ban was lifted this afternoon, and soldiers will be posted at olive-picking sites instead.