Experts say vehicle attacks a passing episode
Defense officials, experts in Middle Eastern affairs say new form of terror attacks used as alternative for suicide bombings
Defense officials and experts in Middle Eastern affairs define the vehicle attacks as a new trend, which serves as an available alternative for potential suicide bombers, who find it difficult to carry out attacks due to the Shin Bet's thwarting operations.
He attributes the new situation to terrorists operating in the Gaza Strip and those who have attempted to carry out suicide bombings in Israel using explosive devices.
"In Gaza, when they realized that there is a problem carrying out terror attacks and due to the difficulty in crossing the fence, they moved to Qassam rockets. There was also a period of stabbing attacks in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem for several months."
According to Yitzhaki, the vehicle attacks are also a new trend, which will continue in the future alongside the old methods.
"These attacks are easy to carry out, and we see them happening again and again. It's a matter of chance. One imitates the other and says that if a tractor can kill people, why can't a BMW. So the probability for such an incident happening again at this time is high," he warns.
Yitzhaki believes, however, that the new attack method will not last for long. "I think the vehicle attacks are a passing episode. Deterring the person committing suicide is indeed difficult, and thus the way to handle it is through the families."
'Any attempt to hurt Jews is a terror attack'
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Tuesday that such attacks cannot be foiled. Yitzhaki believes there is a way to thwart them, but not completely.
"I assume that the security and intelligence officials will invest more sources, set up roadblocks, boost their intelligence activities and act firmly against the terrorists' families. They will manage to reduce and prevent such cases, but stopping them completely will be difficult," he says.
Yitzhaki and Dr. Mordechai Keidar, an expert in Middle Eastern affairs, don't accept the claim that these incidents are not necessarily nationalistically motivated and therefore should not be called terror attacks.
According to the police, the motive of the east Jerusalem resident who ran over a group of soldiers on Monday was unrequited love, as it was discovered a recent marriage proposal he made to his cousin was rejected.
"Any attempt to hurt Jews is nationalistically motivated, whether using a missile or an explosive device or running over. They are all terror attacks. The terror organizations match themselves to the reality dictated by what is happening on the ground," says Yitzhaki.
"Usually when talking about suicide bombers, we know that the motive is a religious motive causing the person to walk towards his death. I don’t accept the claim that those who committed suicide by running over people were mentally ill."
Dr. Keidar notes, "What's the difference if someone who was disappointed by love went and ran over Jews? Someone feels the need to kill Jews after failing an exam. The vehicle attacks have become a fashion. Once there was a fashion of explosions and terror attacks, now these is this fashion."
Keidar presents as an example an attack which took place four and a half years ago.
"In 2004, a woman detonated herself at the Erez crossing, killing four soldiers. An inquiry revealed that she was involved in a forbidden love affair, her husband found out about it and told her to detonate herself among the Jews or he would slaughter her, and her boyfriend was the one who gave her the explosive belt. Was this less of a terror attack?" he asks.
