BICOM

What happened: Over the weekend Israeli security forces made new arrests as part of its attempt to stop the wave of terrorist activity, with efforts focused on Jenin in the northern West Bank.

• Prime Minister Naftali Bennett began yesterday’s cabinet meeting commenting on the security situation. Bennett said: “The State of Israel will settle the score with anyone who has a connection, direct or indirect, to terror attacks … the State of Israel has gone on the offensive.”
• Twenty people have been arrested so far for their alleged involvement in terrorism and were taken in for questioning.
• On Saturday night, IDF special forces entered Yaabed, in the Jenin area, the town of the terrorist who killed five people in Bnei Brak.
• In one house in Yaabed, the forces discovered stolen IDF uniforms and weapons. In another, they found an explosive device.
• The IDF seized other weapons and arrest wanted men suspected of planning terror attacks, most of them from Islamic Jihad.
• Yesterday also in the Jenin area, the IDF located the brothers of the terrorist who killed three people in Tel Aviv last week, but by the time troops arrived, they managed to escape.
• In a separate incident, the IDF is investigating the circumstances where a 40-year-old Palestinian woman was shot by the IDF, near the village Husan in the Bethlehem area. The troops suspected that she was trying to commit a terror attack. They called on her to halt, fired a warning shot in the air, and when she continued to approach, shot at her legs and hit her. She was given first aid by IDF forces and taken to a hospital in Bethlehem, where she died of her injures. It was later revealed that she was unarmed.
• Last night another Palestinian was killed close to al-Khader village, also near Bethlehem, after he threw firebombs at Israeli cars.
• Over the past two days, Joseph’s Tomb in Nablus has been vandalised. Defence Minister Benny Gantz called it “a serious violation of freedom of worship in one of the holiest places for every Jew. It violates the feelings of the entire Jewish nation, especially when it occurs during the Muslim holy month.”
• Last night, two ultra-Orthodox Jews sustained light injuries after entering Nablus without permission and tried to make their way to Joseph’s Tomb. IDF troops gave them first aid and they were then taken to hospital.

Context: The IDF’s counter-terror operation is now entering its third day since the latest terror attack in Tel Aviv.

• The focus is on Jenin, where the terrorists who committed the Bnei Brak and Tel Aviv attacks emanated from.
• Jenin has long been a centre for terrorist organisations, as expert Dr Ely Karmon explained in the BICOM podcast.
• Despite the wave of terror, Israel is keen to keep the easing of restriction for Ramadan in place. However, there are now restrictions on the Jenin area. This includes closing the border crossing close to Jenin, preventing the entry of Israeli Arabs to the city, plus businesspeople who live in the Jenin area will not be permitted to enter Israel. In addition, 5,000 visitor permits for families around Jenin will be cancelled. No limits are placed on Palestinian workers entering Israel but security checks at checkpoints will be tightened.
• There remains around 100,000 Palestinians with work permits that enter Israel on a daily basis.
• In another targeted measure, the cabinet yesterday approved the proposal to formulate policy on revoking the eligibility for state pensions, support payments and the other benefits from state bodies, of the families that support terrorists.
• The recent terror attacks were condemned by Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, but his party affiliates in Jenin have visited the mourning tent and identified with the perpetrators.
• Jenin District Governor Akram Rajoub said that the perpetrator of the shooting attack on Dizengoff Street in Tel Aviv was “not a terrorist”. He said that Israel’s decision to shut the crossing by Jenin was “pushing the Palestinian people into a corner.”
• Yesterday, the security cabinet convened and approved the NIS 360 million plan (£86m) to fix, rebuild and plug the gaps in 40km of the security barrier.
• According to the Ministry of Defence, the new barrier will be a concrete wall up to nine meters’ tall and will be complemented with protective and technological equipment.

Looking ahead: The high state of alert will continue as the Passover festival begins later this week, alongside Easter and Ramadan.

• The manhunt for the father and brother of the Tel Aviv terrorist is ongoing.
• As in the past, it is anticipated that the IDF will demolish the home of where the terrorists lived.
• A general strike has been called in Bethlehem today to protest the killing of the man who threw fire bombs.