It was widely reported, for instance, that Dichter said that Israel "has failed to provide its citizens with the defense envelope over the past three years that they deserve." What received somewhat less of the spotlight was his statement that the Palestinian Authority must be disarmed, and that the existence of an armed Palestinian Authority is an existential threat to Israel.
Dichter, though he rarely speaks publicly, outlined much of his defense philosophy at the Herzliya Conference of the Interdisciplinary Center. He called suicide terrorists "a strategic threat to Israel," and pointed out three main factors responsible for the security situation and terrorism:
* Palestinian terrorist organizations and their ties to the Iranian terrorist-state.
* Israeli-Arabs in general and Arabs of eastern Jerusalem in particular.
* Leaders of the Palestinian Authority, headed by Yasser Arafat.
Dichter stressed that Israel's guiding watchword must be that any Palestinian entity must be "devoid of any military capability." He did not elaborate on how Israel would be able to ensure such conditions following a unilateral withdrawal. The GSS chief also spoke of the importance of the partition fence separating Arab-populated areas in Judea and Samaria from the rest of Israel, and said that the money must be found to complete it as quickly as possible. "The money can even be raises via collection boxes in private homes," he said.
Bemoaning the faulty protection provided by the Israeli government, Dichter said, "In three and a quarter years of intifada, 901 Israelis were killed and some 6,000 were wounded. 540 people were killed within the 1967 Green Line [Judea, Samaria and Gaza]. Suicide attacks were responsible for 55% of casualties, despite comprising just 0.5% of all attacks. All suicide bombers came from Yesha (Judea, Samaria and Gaza), with few exceptions."
He provided encouraging numbers from the past few weeks, however: "Since the attack on Maxim Restaurant in Haifa in October, we have thwarted over 20 suicide bombers, and during the last ten days alone we thwarted three suicide terrorists in the eleventh hour. The relative calm now reigning is both misleading and intoxicating, and does not reflect the true state of affairs."
"Israeli-Arabs increase the power of this type of terrorism," Dichter said, "through their 'blue' [Israeli] ID's and yellow [Israeli] license plates. Their involvement in terrorism is usually confined to assistance." Rather than proposing harsher treatment of Israeli-Arabs involved with terror, Dichter said that the "integration of Israeli-Arabs is an important factor in Israel's national strength."
"Arafat is the one person capable of uniting all the PA's military organizations, including Fatah, under his authority," said Dichter. "Arafat betrayed Israel's, and the world's, trust. Faith in him crumbled from the minute he smuggled a terrorist into Gaza with him the first time he arrived there, and after the attempted weapons smuggling on board the Karin-A ship."
Dichter had some divisive words as well, saying that Jewish terrorism is a major threat, and that "Jewish terrorists were responsible for killing seven Palestinians just for being Palestinians... the Jewish terrorists were not above targeting schoolchildren."
Dichter, though he rarely speaks publicly, outlined much of his defense philosophy at the Herzliya Conference of the Interdisciplinary Center. He called suicide terrorists "a strategic threat to Israel," and pointed out three main factors responsible for the security situation and terrorism:
* Palestinian terrorist organizations and their ties to the Iranian terrorist-state.
* Israeli-Arabs in general and Arabs of eastern Jerusalem in particular.
* Leaders of the Palestinian Authority, headed by Yasser Arafat.
Dichter stressed that Israel's guiding watchword must be that any Palestinian entity must be "devoid of any military capability." He did not elaborate on how Israel would be able to ensure such conditions following a unilateral withdrawal. The GSS chief also spoke of the importance of the partition fence separating Arab-populated areas in Judea and Samaria from the rest of Israel, and said that the money must be found to complete it as quickly as possible. "The money can even be raises via collection boxes in private homes," he said.
Bemoaning the faulty protection provided by the Israeli government, Dichter said, "In three and a quarter years of intifada, 901 Israelis were killed and some 6,000 were wounded. 540 people were killed within the 1967 Green Line [Judea, Samaria and Gaza]. Suicide attacks were responsible for 55% of casualties, despite comprising just 0.5% of all attacks. All suicide bombers came from Yesha (Judea, Samaria and Gaza), with few exceptions."
He provided encouraging numbers from the past few weeks, however: "Since the attack on Maxim Restaurant in Haifa in October, we have thwarted over 20 suicide bombers, and during the last ten days alone we thwarted three suicide terrorists in the eleventh hour. The relative calm now reigning is both misleading and intoxicating, and does not reflect the true state of affairs."
"Israeli-Arabs increase the power of this type of terrorism," Dichter said, "through their 'blue' [Israeli] ID's and yellow [Israeli] license plates. Their involvement in terrorism is usually confined to assistance." Rather than proposing harsher treatment of Israeli-Arabs involved with terror, Dichter said that the "integration of Israeli-Arabs is an important factor in Israel's national strength."
"Arafat is the one person capable of uniting all the PA's military organizations, including Fatah, under his authority," said Dichter. "Arafat betrayed Israel's, and the world's, trust. Faith in him crumbled from the minute he smuggled a terrorist into Gaza with him the first time he arrived there, and after the attempted weapons smuggling on board the Karin-A ship."
Dichter had some divisive words as well, saying that Jewish terrorism is a major threat, and that "Jewish terrorists were responsible for killing seven Palestinians just for being Palestinians... the Jewish terrorists were not above targeting schoolchildren."