The month of Ramadan continues to supply a dizzying mass of security incidents in every sector. The Temple Mount, which has been the center of interest for the last two weeks, was replaced on Monday by the north, where riots prompted by Hamas broke out.
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The rocket fired overnight at the western Galilee didn't cause any injuries or damage, but was a reminder that Hamas is working assiduously to incite all the conflict zones. After trying to create unrest among Arab Israelis, without success, seeing only partial success in attempts to incite Judea and Samaria, and great success on the Temple Mount, Hamas is trying to light up the north.
The organization is doing this through a branch it established in Lebanon that operates under Salah al-Arouri, a senior official in Hamas abroad who was released from prison in the Schalit deal and then deported. Since then, Arouri has been active on the Turkey-Qatar-Lebanon axis, where he has established terrorist infrastructure funded by Iran and approved by Hezbollah, which is supposed to allow the group to operate from Lebanon in the case of escalation in Gaza or Jerusalem.
This infrastructure is also supposed to allow Hezbollah to enjoy the best of both worlds – seeing Israel under attack, without having to pay the price itself. Israel certainly cannot allow this development to go ahead. Last year, it stuttered prior to responding to rocket fire from Lebanon, and did well to respond to the latest incident immediately. The response was soft, but designed to send a message to Lebanon and Hezbollah that responsibility would not be limited to the fringe elements who fired the rocket itself.
To highlight the message, IDF spokesperson in Arabic Lt. Col. Avichay Adraee revealed on Monday how senior Hezbollah member Haj Khalil Harb smuggled drugs and weapons over the border. While there were deeper motive in revealing the method than simply thwarting the smuggling, the message aimed to tie Hezbollah to the drug trade and crime, and mainly portray the organization as putting Lebanon at risk through its conduct.
The links between the different fronts and the attempt to incite the Arab and Palestinian public are not down to Hamas alone. The Palestinian Islamic Jihad is doing the same thing, as we know following the exposure of a PIJ attempt to establish a terrorist infrastructure in Judea and Samaria that the Shin Bet security agency foiled. This network, like prior ones, operated in northern Samaria. According to a Shin Bet statement, members of the network managed to build a bomb before they were captured. This is disturbing because of the potential damage bombs like these can create is much bigger than what a single terrorist can perpetrate.
Since the Second Intifada, the Shin Bet has torpedoes dozens of similar plots, preventing mass-casualty suicide bombings. Nevertheless, it's clear that terrorist organization are still trying to carry out attacks of this type, hoping to shock Israel. They are operating under the incorrect idea that they will cause escalation in one zone – Judea and Samaria – while avoiding it in another – the Gaza Strip. This attempt failed when Hamas kidnapped three teens in June 2014, leading to Operation Protective Edge, and instigated riots on the Temple Mount in 2021, which led to Operation Guardian of the Walls. Israel has to make it clear to the groups in Gaza that now, too, their multi-front game comes at a price – that if, heaven forbid, a major terrorist attack is carried out that is funded, planned, and handled from Gaza, then Gaza is where Israel will respond.
We can assume that attempts to light up various sectors will continue through the end of Ramadan. This requires Israel to continue its high state of security alert, and respond judiciously. In the meantime, forces are staying on high alert. There are plenty more tense days ahead until the all-clear sirens sound.
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