News of Terrorism and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (March 23-29, 2011)

The bus bombed by terrorists in Jerusalem on March 23. A British woman was killed in the attack and almost 40 Israeli civilians were wounded (Israeli Government Press Office, March 24, 2011).

Overview

Terrorist events this past week focused on the IED which exploded at a bus stop in Jerusalem near the International Convention Center. It killed a British subject and wounded 39 Israeli civilians. At this point it is unknown who carried out the attack. The escalation in rocket and mortar shell fire which began on March 19 has waned (although sporadic rocket fire continues). This past week 13 rocket hits and 18 mortar shell hits were identified in Israeli territory. One of the rockets was a Grad which fell near the southern Israeli city of Ashdod. In response Israeli aircraft attacked a number of terrorist targets in the Gaza Strip. Hamas- and Palestinian Islamic Jihad-affiliated media reported that Hamas was trying to enforce its authority on the other terrorist organizations operating in the Gaza Strip and make them stop firing rockets.

Overview

Civilians Targeted in Terrorist Attack at a Bus Stop in Jerusalem

At 15:00 hours on March 23 an IED exploded in Jerusalem. It was hidden in a bag and left near a bus stop next to the International Convention Center. Mary Jane Gardner, a 59 year-old British subject, was killed and 39 Israeli civilians were wounded. Two buses were damaged. So far it is not known whether the attack was carried out by a terrorist organization or a lone terrorist.

The bus damaged by the IED (Israeli Government Press Office, March 24, 2011).

Israeli Prime Minister’s Response

Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu condemned the attack saying that "[r]ecently, there have been elements that have tried�to test our resolve and the fortitude of our people. They will learn that the Government, the IDF and the Israeli public have an iron will to defend the state and its citizens. We will act vigorously, responsibly and prudently in order to maintain the quiet and the security that have prevailed here over the past two years."¹

Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu denounces the attack before his departure for Moscow

(Prime Minister’s website, photo by the Israeli Government Press Office, March 23, 2011).

Palestinian Authority Responses

Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas condemned the attack. He also condemning the Israeli Air Force counterterrorism attack in the Gaza Strip on March 22 which, according to reports in the Palestinian Authority media, killed eights Palestinians and wounded 18 (Wafa News Agency, March 23, 2011).

Palestinian prime minister Salam Fayyad condemned the terrorist attack "regardless of who was behind it" and sent wishes for a speedy recovery to the wounded. He denounced the Palestinians who continued to carry out "shameful" acts which contradicted the efforts of Palestinians acting "peacefully and resolutely" (Wafa News Agency, March 23, 2011).

Responses from the Terrorist Organizations in the Gaza Strip

Hamas spokesmen did not relate to the terrorist attack in Jerusalem but focused on the escalation in the Gaza Strip. Spokesmen for the other terrorist organizations expressed satisfaction with the attack in Jerusalem.

• The Palestinian Islamic Jihad: Abu Ahmed, spokesman for the PIJ’s Jerusalem Brigades praised the attack. He called it a "quality response" and said his organization supported whoever had carried it out (Al-Manar TV and Agence France-Presse, March 23, 2011). Khader Habib, senior PIJ figure, also praised the attack but said that his organization did not know who was behind it. He added that Israel had to pay the price for its activities in the Gaza Strip "with the blood of its civilians and settlers" (PIJ’s Paltoday website, March 23, 2011).

• Maher al-Taher, spokesman for the political bureau of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, called the attack a "heroic operation" and said that it proved once again that the path of "resistance and jihad" [i.e., terrorism] was the way to liberate Palestine (Al-Alam TV, March 23, 2011).

The American President’s Response

In a statement on Wednesday, American President Barack Obama condemned the attack in Jerusalem "in the strongest possible terms." He said that "�I offer my deepest condolences for those injured or killed. There is never any possible justification for terrorism. The United States calls on the groups responsible to end these attacks at once and we underscore that Israel, like all nations, has a right to self-defense." He also expressed condolences for civilians harmed in recent Israeli operations in Gaza, urging an end to the violence.²

Important Terrorism Events

The Gaza Strip

Rocket And Mortar Shell Fire ³

The escalation in rocket and mortar shell fire which began on March 19 has waned (although sporadic rocket fire continues). This past week 13 rocket hits and 18 mortar shell hits were identified in Israeli territory.

The main attacks were the following:

• On March 23 six mortar shell hits were identified in the western Negev south of Ashqelon. One of them contained phosphorous.⁴

• On March 24 five rocket hits were identified, one of them a Grad rocket which landed near the southern Israeli city of Ashdod. Four additional rockets fell in open areas in the western Negev. There were no casualties and no damage was done. Five mortar shell hits were also identified, all fired simultaneously, falling in open areas in the western Negev.

• On March 26 two rockets landed in the western Negev. There were no casualties but damage was done to property.

A home in the western Negev damaged by a rocket which fell nearby

(Photo by Yehuda Lahiani, courtesy of NRG, March 26 2011).

Most of the terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip claimed responsibility for the rocket and mortar shell fire. They included the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the Popular Resistance Committees, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (the various organizations’ websites, March 24-26, 2011). Hamas, however, did not claim responsibility and in our assessment was not involved.

Rockets and Mortar Shells Fired into Israeli Territory ⁵

Rocket Fire — Monthly Distribution

Mortar Shell Fire — Monthly Distribution

The Israeli Response: Israeli Aircraft Attacks

In response to the massive barrages of rockets and mortar shells, Israeli aircraft attacked terrorist targets in the Gaza Strip a number of times:

• March 27: Israeli aircraft attacked a squad of terrorist operatives attempting to fire a rocket. The Palestinian media reported that two of the operatives were killed (IDF Spokesman’s website and Haaretz, March 27, 2011).

• March 24: Israeli aircraft attacked a smuggling tunnel, a Hamas Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades training camp and a weapons storehouse. The media reported that three Palestinians sustained minor injuries (IDF Spokesman’s website, Hamas� Palestine-info website, Haaretz, March 24, 2011). In addition, a squad of terrorist operatives planning to fire rockets into Israeli territory was attacked, and two Palestinians may have been seriously wounded (IDF Spokesman’s website and Ma’an News Agency, March 24, 2011).

Two of the terrorist targets hit by Israeli aircraft. Left: A Hamas Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades

training camp. Right: A smuggling tunnel in the southern Gaza Strip

(Hamas’ Safa News Agency, March 25-26, 2011).

Iron Dome Deployment

In view of the escalation in rocket attacks, especially long-range rockets, the IDF decided to deploy the Iron Dome mobile air defense system in the Beersheba region. The Israeli-developed system is currently on the fast track of being integrated into the Israeli Air Force and will soon be operational. It is expected to provide the residents of southern Israel with better, although not perfect, protection against rockets (IDF Spokesman, March 27, 2011).

The Iron Dome mobile air defense system deployed to protect Beersheba

(Photo by Yehuda Lahiani, courtesy of NRG, March 20 2011).

Hamas Efforts to Restrain Rocket Fire

Following the escalation of rocket and mortar shell fire, the Hamas- and Palestinian Islamic Jihad-affiliated media reported that Hamas was making an effort to enforce its authority on the other terrorist organizations and restrain their rocket fire. On March 26 Hamas held a meeting with representatives from the other terrorist organizations operating in the Gaza Strip. They agreed to continue the lull in the fighting according to a formula of "quiet in return for quiet:" if Israel stopped attacking the Gaza Strip, the organizations would stop their fire (Al-Aqsa TV and the PIJ’s Paltoday website, March 26, 2011).

According to the Palestinian media, there has recently been tension between Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad because the PIJ refused to stop firing rockets until "Israel committed itself to the lull." According to the reports, Ramadan Shalah, PIJ leader in Damascus, rejected the request of Ismail Haniya, head of the de facto Hamas administration in the Gaza Strip. He refused to order his organization to preserve the lull with Israel, and gave the PIJ operatives the green light to do as they pleased without consideration for "the interests of Hamas." The Palestinian media also reported that a PIJ delegation had left for Egypt and Damascus to consult with its leadership about continuing the rocket fire (Al-Sharq al-Awsat, March 25; Agence France-Presse and Qudsnet, March 24, 2011).

Judea and Samaria

IDF Soldier Attacked

On March 25 an IDF soldier was attacked by a Palestinian near Tomer, a village in the Jordan Valley. The Palestinian threw stones at the soldier and tried to snatch his weapon. The soldier sustained serious wounds. Israeli police forces who passed by at the time opened fire at the Palestinian, shooting him in the leg. He was taken to a hospital in Israel (IDF Spokesman’s website and Wafa News Agency, March 25, 2011).

Other Events

This past week the Israeli security forces continued their counterterrorism activities, detaining Palestinians suspected of terrorist activities and seizing weapons. It was also reported that the Palestinian Authority’s internal security forces detained a number of Palestinian Islamic Jihad operatives who were suspected of being involved in the terrorist attack in Jerusalem (PIJ’s Paltoday website, March 23, 2011).

This past week there were several confrontations between Palestinians and Israeli settlers. In addition, demonstrations were held in Judea and Samaria where stones were thrown at Israeli security forces. In Jerusalem, residents of the Silwan neighborhood confronted Israeli security forces, throwing stones and firecrackers (Hamas’ Safa News Agency, March 26, 2011).

Developments in the Gaza Strip

The Crossings

Despite the escalation in rocket fire, merchandise continues to be transported into and out of the Gaza Strip. This past week between 153 and 209 trucks carrying merchandise entered the Gaza Strip every day, including 400 tons of cooking fuel and dozens of truckloads of building material. In addition, hundreds of thousands of flowers for export abroad left the Gaza Strip though the crossings into Israel. A number of Palestinian children who had been inadvertently wounded by IDF counterattacks in the Gaza Strip were taken to Israel for medical treatment (Website of the Israeli government coordinator for the territories, March 29, 2011).

Hamas Delegation Meets in Egypt with Senior Egyptian Regime Figures

A Hamas delegation headed by Mahmoud al-Zahar, a senior figure in the Gaza Strip, was in Egypt as part of a series of visits to countries in the region, including Sudan, Turkey and Syria. While in Egypt Mahmoud al-Zahar met with the assistant Egyptian foreign minister and the head of Egyptian intelligence, Murad Muwafi (Al-Yawm Al-Saba’a and Al-Jazeera TV, March 28, 2011).

After the meeting Mahmoud al-Zahar held a press conference. He said that Egypt after the revolution gave strength to the Palestinian cause and that now Egypt had to redefine its regional policies. He said he intended to meet with the foreign minister to discuss the internal Palestinian reconciliation, the lifting of the "siege" of the Gaza Strip and the release of the Palestinians held prisoners in Egypt (Al-Jazeera TV, March 28, 2011).

The Internal Palestinian Arena

Dealing with a Fatah-Hamas Reconciliation Continues

Sources within the Palestinian Authority continue their efforts to promote a visit for Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas to the Gaza Strip. On March 26 Mahmoud Abbas met in his office with a Hamas delegation and presented them with an initiative to end the schism. It included establishing an independent government of technocrats in the Gaza Strip as a temporary body which would rule until general elections. Mahmoud Abbas stressed the importance of Palestinian unity for political activity in the UN in September 2011 and to prevent the continuation of what he called "Israeli aggression" (Wafa News Agency, March 26, 2011).

According to recent reports in the Palestinian media, April was set as the date for beginning a Fatah-Hamas reconciliation dialogue. The meetings are expected to be held in Cairo. It was reported that Mahmoud Abbas’ visit to the Gaza Strip would therefore be postponed until the dialogue began (Al-Ghad, March 28, 2011). Aziz Dweik, chairman of the Palestinian Legislative Council, said that in the coming days Mahmoud Abbas would receive an official invitation to visit the Gaza Strip. He added that the Hamas administration was interested in having him enter through the Rafah crossing to symbolize the breaking of the "siege" of the Gaza Strip (Al-Quds Al-Arabi, March 26, 2011).

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¹ http://www.pmo.gov.il/PMOEng/Communication/Spokesman/2011/03/spokepigua230311.htm

² http://nationaljournal.com/nationalsecurity/obama-condemns-jerusalem-attack-20110323

³ Updated supplementary information for the ITIC’s March 23, 2011 bulletin, "Escalation continues in Israel’s south: One Grad rocket falls near the city of Ashdod and two hit Beersheba," at http://www.terrorism-info.org.il/malam_multimedia/English/eng_n/pdf/ipc_e176.pdf.

⁴ For further information about the use of phosphorous in mortar shells, see the November 26, 2010 ITIC bulletin, Terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip have recently once again made use of phosphorus-containing 120-mm mortar shells

⁵ The statistics do not include the rockets and mortar shells which fell inside the Gaza Strip.

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