Arnon Grunberg

Intersection

Demonstrations

On the status quo – Amos Harel in Haaretz:

‘The assessment in the Central Command is that the four terrorist attacks in city centers (Be’er Sheva, Hadera, Bnei Brak and Tel Aviv), which claimed 14 lives, have produced a few copycat attempts, but haven’t yet coalesced into a longer and more continuous wave of terrorism. At the moment there are mainly “lone wolves” who want to act under the inspiration of others before them, but the public is not joining in the violence. The daily calls in Ramallah for confrontations with soldiers at the Ayosh intersection at the city’s northern exit bring about 20 young people there every evening. In periods of tension in the past, thousands of Palestinians took part in similar demonstrations.’

(…)

‘Two months ago, senior IDF personnel, in a conversation with Haaretz, anticipated a flare-up in the territories against the background of Passover and Ramadan. In retrospect, it turns out that they knew exactly what they were basing their forecasts on. The Shin Bet drew up a detailed appraisal about the intentions of Saleh al-Arouri, the deputy head of Hamas’ political bureau and the official in charge of the organization’s West Bank desk. Arouri, who moves among Turkey, Lebanon and Qatar, devised an elaborate plan: to fan the flames in Jerusalem in general and the Temple Mount in particular during the confluence of Passover, Ramadan and Easter, in the hope that the violence would spill over into the West Bank and Israel proper, but presumably maintaining the calm in the Gaza Strip. The incitement in Jerusalem and the West Bank is taking place on social media, but also with the help of channeling funds to political organizers and terrorist activists.’

(…)

‘Another danger emanates from the issue of the salaries of the security units. The PA is encountering growing financial difficulties, largely due to the falloff in aid from the donor states. The salaries of the officers and rank-and-file personnel have been slashed by 25 percent, and some of them are having to take a second job to make ends meet. If armed Fatah activists and, more seriously, personnel of the security units, join the clashes with Israel, the circumstances in the territories could change completely.
In their frequent conversations with Israeli army officers, senior PA figures are saying reassuringly that they will not let that happen. At the same time, it’s clear that the attacks of the past month left all the sides tense and on edge. Against this background, the government’s decision not to impose a closure on the territories during Passover (except on the two holiday eves) is a real gamble. If it succeeds, the West Bank economy will be spared another blow, and it will perhaps also help restrain the security deterioration. If it fails, some will be happy to draw a connection between the government’s supposed weakness and the continuing wave of terrorism.’

Read the article here.

Because of the lack of a political i.e. sustainable solution, these gambles will continue for the foreseeable future.

The belief that violence will be a means to bring about the desired end has faded everywhere in the Middle East and also elsewhere. Violence is a means, the continuation of the status quo the end.

Maybe only the people who willingly sacrifice themselves (and others) don’t know this.

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