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Israel is currently experiencing a wave of Palestinian/Islamic terror which it had not seen "in many years" - with three shooting attacks and one stabbing attack in less than 2 weeks. (search Google for "recent terror attacks in Israel", for countless references on this factor).

(Apr/10/22 Update: Joseph's Tomb in Nablus burnt and near-demolished, 1 stabbing attack at the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron.)

What could have triggered it? Please note that the Month of Ramadan cannot be the full answer, since it comes about, every year.

Let me give a few examples of triggers to previous terror waves;

  1. 1987, First Intifada: An Israeli trucker killed several Gazans by accident.
  2. 2000, 2nd Intifada: Israeli PM Ariel Sharon visited the Temple Mount.
  3. 2015, The 2015-2016 Wave of Violence ("Knife Intifada"): Widespread propaganda by the PA that Israel wants to change the "Status Quo" at the Temple Mount.

(refrences are endless, just a quick search on Google).

Jacob3
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  • Please note that as I'm writing this question, a terror attack is "going on" in Tel Aviv, 2 citizens killed and 8 wounded as of now, the terrorist wasn't caught yet. – Jacob3 Apr 07 '22 at 20:13
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    Is it really that rare? Last year people were asking if this is the "third intifada" https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/05/israel-palestine-third-intifada.html – Vladimir F Героям слава Apr 07 '22 at 21:16
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    @VladimirFГероямслава it's not that it doesn't happen. It's that it's not a regular occurrence. It comes in waves. So the question of whether there have been any political events, which have triggered the current wave, is apropos. – wrod Apr 08 '22 at 00:09
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    I don't think this question can be reasonably answered since it requires speculation about the motives of half-a-dozen people that have been shot dead. – Stand with Gaza Apr 08 '22 at 07:31
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    To all my dear commentators: #1 Until about 2 weeks ago a "shooting" attack was cosidered very rare in Israel - something which can happen once in a few months. #2 Usually the terror groups blame Israeli "Provocations" for the terror waves, the current Israeli government seems to be very easy on the Palestinians, allowing some 20,000 Gazans to work in Israel, and easing restrictions on non-citizen-Palestinians wanting to visit the temple mount during Ramadan. And forging closer ties with the PA and Jordan. – Jacob3 Apr 08 '22 at 09:58
  • to be clear: you are wondering whether something specifically triggered the current attack, and you are not wondering why Palestinians would hate Israel in general, right? – Reasonably Against Genocide Apr 08 '22 at 11:34
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    What kind of reasons are you asking for? The triggers you put in the list are the excuses made up by the media at the time. – FluidCode Apr 10 '22 at 15:39
  • restrictions have not been eased for Ramadan, they have been tightened. Allowing Palestians to work in Israel with restrictive visas that can be withdrawn at a moments notice is not "very easy on the Palestinians" – Vorsprung Apr 10 '22 at 16:01

2 Answers2

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It looks like the first two of the attacks in the recent spate were claimed by ISIS. PM Bennett appears to have agreed that ISIS supporters were responsible, at least for those. At least one of the attackers had tried to join ISIS in Syria.

While I haven't seen a detailed reason provided by ISIS, some Palestinian organizations like Hamas and the Islamic Jihad, which applauded the attackers (while disclaiming direct responsibility), connected the attacks to their displeasure with the meeting in the Negev between Israel and a number of Arab countries.

The 3rd attack was apparently claimed by "Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades -- the armed wing of the Palestinian Fatah movement". It's not clear to me if anyone has claimed the 4th attack insofar, but it was carried out by a Palestinian from Jenin (West Bank), whom apparently had "no clear organizational affiliation".

the gods from engineering
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  • N.B. Some Al Aqsa were killed in February by Israeli forces, after being held responsible for attacks on Israeli soldiers. So there may have been a change in methods by them, switching to easier targets, perhaps inspired by the ISIS attacks. – the gods from engineering Apr 09 '22 at 07:32
  • Is this a new area of operation, by ISIS? I thought they'd wisely stayed away from Israel in the past, preferring to commit atrocities against fellow Muslims. – Italian Philosophers 4 Monica Apr 09 '22 at 16:24
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    @ItalianPhilosophers4Monica: apparently ISIS was more easily deterred by Israel when they had some territory and so something to lose (besides the lives of would-be suicide attackers). https://www.belfercenter.org/publication/why-isis-fears-israel – the gods from engineering Apr 09 '22 at 16:58
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    @ItalianPhilosophers4Monica: And I'm not sure how reliable this info is, but apparently it was reported in February that Israel had cooperated with the US in killing some ISIS leaders https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/israel/defense/1643923730-report-israel-helped-the-us-eliminate-is-leader That might have been what prompted the ISIS cells in Israel to start their attacks, but I'm not sure. – the gods from engineering Apr 09 '22 at 17:05
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The Israeli military also launched an 11-day bombardment campaign on Gaza, killing at least 260 Palestinians, including 66 children.

Why are there terrorists in Israel? And who are the terrorists?

It's clear that the tragedy of killings is driven by both sides, with the Palestinians taking more of the suffering.

One way of looking at it is that more than 30 years of extreme right-wing government opposed to Palestinian rights in Israel was bound to lead to outbursts - and these could happen at any time.

F1Krazy
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Vorsprung
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    I'm sorry but your answer doesn't seem to try to answer my question, but to express your opinons on the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. There are plenty of discussions on this site explaining the Israeli/Palestinian conflict (see my recent answer to https://politics.stackexchange.com/questions/72259/minimizing-civilian-casualties-during-the-siege-of-mariupol/72261#72261). – Jacob3 Apr 10 '22 at 11:28
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    ok, my answer is that there is no specific trigger. It is an inevitable consequence of many years of extreme right wing government in Israel. Your original question was loaded with an assumption that there is a specific "cause" or change in the situation. There is no change. The conflict continues – Vorsprung Apr 10 '22 at 12:09
  • The history of Palestinian terrorism shows that each wave was triggered by something. – Jacob3 Apr 10 '22 at 14:03
  • Would you be so kind to provide proofs for the claims, and state the time interval for alleged attacks? – dEmigOd Apr 10 '22 at 14:16
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    And the current government is very much a left-wing government (in spite of the stated right-wing-ness of Bennet's party) which includes an Arab party as part of the governing coalition, and which to date has already made very far-reaching concessions to the Arab party. Your description of the Gaza conflict of last year is also extremely one-sided, completely ignoring 4300 rockets and mortars fired into Israel, which prompted the Israeli response; and that Hamas was willing for Gaza to burn, to make up for the loss of face when Abbas cancelled the elections out from under them. – Zev Spitz May 08 '22 at 23:25
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    the current government is about 25% left wing ministers. Is this "very much" left wing? Perhaps so compared to the years of extreme right wing governments previously. The original question is "one sided" in portraying Palestinian attacks on civilians as terrorism - it needs to be pointed out that both sides attack innocent civilians – Vorsprung May 10 '22 at 07:40