The incident in which Sgt. First Class (res.) Eviatar Ben Yehuda was killed by an explosive charge placed near the West Bank village of Tammun in the northern Jordan Valley isn’t another isolated attack against IDF forces but part of a series of terror operations.
The terrorists behind these attacks are not always affiliated with an organization. Sometimes it’s a local group. In any case, there’s an escalation in the quality of their execution and this is part of a concerning trend that requires the IDF to immediately shift to significant offensive actions to pressure the terrorists. It’s no longer sufficient to only be defensive.
Scene of Tammun deadly explosion
Although the IDF claimed the device was improvised and non-standard, it managed to significantly damage the jeep. The army didn’t have intelligence indicating that the route was rigged, nor did it assess that an explosive would be placed in such a location.
For this reason, a D9 bulldozer didn’t pass through the area, as is done, for example, in the Jenin refugee camp, which must be regularly “scraped” to prevent the placement of heavy explosives meant to harm forces moving in the area.
If the IDF needs bulldozers in Tammun already – and there are those that have not yet arrived from the United States – this indicates how much the situation has worsened in the West Bank.
Ynet has been reporting on changes in trends in the West Bank over the past year. One of the most concerning is the use of powerful explosives, some of which are military-grade. Iran sends them, they're then smuggled through Jordan and reach terror organizations on the other side of the Israeli border. The border isn’t sealed and the barrier there is very old. It’s quite easy to cross.
Last week, an IDF vehicle ran over an explosive in Qabatiya. Three soldiers were injured, two of them seriously. This is a very similar area to where yesterday’s incident took place.
About a month ago, a military vehicle carrying the commander of the Menashe Brigade, Col. Ayoub Kyuff, and the commander of the West Bank Division, Brig. Gen. Yaakov Dolf, was hit by an explosive device. Kyuff was lightly injured. Dolf was unharmed. The device was powerful and it’s only by chance that we didn’t lose two senior commanders.
Perhaps even then, the incident should have been taken more seriously and a transition to offensive action should have been made because afterward came the severe attack in Funduq in the West Bank near Kedumim, in which three Israelis were murdered. The terror cell that carried it out was skilled, arrived with advanced weapons, quickly fled the scene and has yet to be captured.
What fuels the fire is the release of terrorists from prisons as part of the hostage deal and the boost in morale Hamas received as a result. It can be assumed that they’ll now try, together with the Iranians, to ignite the West Bank – both through attacks against IDF forces and Israeli targets and through actions aimed at toppling the Palestinian Authority and seizing control.
Get the Ynetnews app on your smartphone: Google Play: https://bit.ly/4eJ37pE | Apple App Store: https://bit.ly/3ZL7iNv
This reality could be catastrophic for Israel. This region, where three million Palestinians and half a million Israelis live together, is harder to defend than any other place.

The IDF has reinforced the West Bank Division with seven companies distributed to different brigade sectors across the region. It will establish checkpoints and barriers for Palestinian vehicles, which will undergo inspection before entering the routes shared by Israelis and Palestinians in an attempt to thwart the next shooting or bombing attacks.
However, it’s very difficult to operate while only defending. Decision-makers have included the West Bank in the war’s objectives. In light of developments in the north and Gaza, the focus has officially shifted there. If this is the case, the terrorists there must be pressed much harder.