BICOM

What happened: Around 200 Israeli troops took part in a counter-terror raid yesterday morning, targeting the terrorists who killed three members of the Dee family.

• The raid deep into the casbah of Nablus was partially captured in Palestinian CCTV and appeared to show the lead IDF soldiers in disguise, including some dressed as women, others as labourers.
• Troops surrounded the building and following a short gun fight, the IDF announced that they killed the two Hamas terrorist operatives Hassan Ktnani and Maed Mitsri along with third Hamas operative Ibrahim Hura, who had helped them hide.
• The IDF also found two M-16 rifles and an AK-47 in the apartment used in the attack against the Dee family three weeks ago.

Responses: Following the operation, Prime Minister Netanyahu said, “This morning we settled the score with the murderers of Lucy, Maia, and Rina Dee. Our message to those who harm us, and to those who try to harm us, is that it may take a day, a week, or a month – be assured that we will come for you. It doesn’t matter where you try to hide, we will find you. Whoever harms us – their blood is on their own heads.”

• Rabbi Leo Dee told Ynet, “The world will be able to sleep better when these terrorists are no longer alive. I am very happy to hear that no soldier or civilian was hurt or affected in the event. It is a mission that only the IDF and the Shin Bet can do.”
• Curiously, the Governor of Nablus Ibrahim Ramadan released a statement saying, “The killing of the young men in Nablus this morning is a natural result of their non-compliance with the Palestinian security services and their refusal to surrender their weapons.”
• Chairman of Palestinian Authority (PA) Mahmud Abbas said, “We strongly condemn the aggression against Nablus and call on the American administration to act to stop it.”
• Hamas claimed all three men were members of their military wing and said the attack in the Jordan Valley was in response to the Israeli aggression against worshipers in al-Aqsa during the month of Ramadan.

Context: Intelligence sources have revealed that the security establishment knew the identity of the terrorists hours after the attack and assumed that they were hiding in the casbah in Nablus.

• They waited until they had the precise location of their hideout.
• The entire raid was completed in an hour, no other Palestinians were killed and no IDF forces were injured, though an IDF dog was killed whilst protecting a soldier.
• The raid is another intelligence coup for Israel, as well as a complex operation in the heart of a Palestinian city in broad daylight.
• The raid comes days after the latest flare-up when over a hundred rockets were fired from Gaza on Tuesday.
• The IDF responded with airstrikes against sixteen military targets, with one Palestinian reportedly killed.
• The relatively subdued response caused anger among some right wing members of the government. This anger was compounded when it was revealed that the prime minister did not invite Public Security Minister Ben Gvir to the security consultation. This is turn led Ben Gvir and his five members of Knesset to boycott parliamentary votes on Wednesday, with threats to resigns, and counter threats from the Likud telling him to quit.
• The cell, with its affiliation to Hamas, attests to a rise in Hamas involvement in West Bank terror. In addition one of the men killed yesterday was a close family relation of Husam Badran, a senior Hamas official released as part of the Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange, who now lives in Qatar.
• The third man killed was also a member of the Lion’s Den group, further proof of their coordination with Hamas.

• Overall there is growing concern over the terror infrastructure in the West Bank, particularly the phenomena of small cells armed with automatic weapons who are planning further attacks. There is increased speculation whether it will be necessary to conduct a wider scale military operation. Currently there are four possible scenarios:
  • A large scale operation across the West Bank: the logic being it is better to strike before there is a major terror attack and take the initiative.
  • Others have suggested a more gradual approach: instead of one large operation, a series of localised ones.
  • A third option is to continue the current practice of targeted operations that focus on specific intelligence against wanted suspects or ‘ticking bombs’ where an attack is imminent.
  • A fourth option is to empower PA security forces to operate against these threats.
  • A fifth option could be a combination of the last three options.

• Meanwhile, in Damascus yesterday, as part of his historic visit, Iranian President Raisi met with Palestinian leaders including the head of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Ziyad al-Nakhalah as the latest indicator of closer Iranian ties to Palestinian terror groups.

Looking ahead: Large deployments of IDF troops remain in place across the West Bank, with Hamas threatening to launch revenge attacks for yesterday’s killing.

• In the next couple of weeks, the Palestinians will mark the Nakba Day (catastrophe) on May 15, the English anniversary of Israel’s independence. Later that week, Israel marks Jerusalem Day, the anniversary of reunifying the city. Both dates have in the past seen a spike in hostilities.