The horrific attacks that claimed the lives of the late Yigal and Hillel Yaniv and the late Ilan Ganels cause feelings of outrage.
The criminals who embarked on this murderous mission will pay the price - they and their senders.
The words of the late Yigal and Hillel's mother are touching, who a short time after losing two of her sons, wanted to convey a message in the spirit of the unity of the people. Something about the values of this family can also be learned from the decision to donate the organs of their loved ones to save souls in Israel.
Hvara
The US is already asking for clarification, photo: Eric Marmor/Flash90
The feelings of outrage are natural and understandable, but acts of revenge by independent militias are not.
Illegal, illegitimate, not Jewish, not Zionist, not Israeli.
The State of Israel is a state of law, the level that guides the use of force is the political level, and the only party that may use it is the IDF and the security establishment.
What was done in Hawara is a riot that focused on an uninvolved population, and those responsible for these actions not only deserve all condemnation, but also need to be arrested and investigated - and as soon as possible.
Beyond the enormous international damage of these events (the US is already asking for clarification) and beyond the fact that, as mentioned, there is nothing between them and our values as a society - those people are harming the IDF's ability to pursue those who really need to be pursued.
The damned terrorist who committed the murder and anyone who may have assisted him.
Instead of the security forces being focused on capturing the killer, they are busy dealing with the citizens of Israel, trying to maintain law and order against this group of violent extremists.
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The Jordanians are important for peace on the Temple Mount, photo: GettyImages
The expectation from all public leaders is to speak in a uniform, clear voice, which does not imply two faces and clarifications.
A situation in which the "commander's spirit" would allow, even in the blink of an eye, the legitimacy of such violence must be prevented.
It is appropriate that the event in Hvar should be learned.
The lessons should be learned both at the tactical level of the deployment of forces and at the political level, we are in a new situation.
At the strategic level, Israel is losing control over the cycle of escalation.
This vicious circle - in which Israeli thwarting leads to a wave of Palestinian revenge in Judea and Samaria and Gaza, and repeats, God forbid - has not been broken.
The Israeli government must act urgently to restore order and stability - we are a sovereign state that exercises force according to the law and in accordance with the powers.
The initiated countermeasures must be continued, in order to harm the terrorists, arrest them and disrupt their plans.
But at the same time, consider accurately and professionally, and based on intelligence, the operational benefit of any operation in the heart of the Palestinian territory and in the light of day in the face of the collateral damage it produces.
I have no doubt that the Chief of Staff and the Prime Minister who made the decision on the latest operation in Nablus understood the implications and also took into account the response scenarios. The target was probably worthy enough to take this action at the specific point in time. But this critical examination should be carried out all the time.
The renewal of security coordination will reduce friction with the Palestinian population (archive), photo: Reuters
Despite the events that made it a little forgotten, the conference in Aqaba is extremely important.
For a very low price that the State of Israel already paid more than a week ago (in the days before the canceled vote in the UN Security Council) we received some very important things.
First, the Jordanian involvement.
This involvement is very important in the context of the Temple Mount and the efforts to calm Jerusalem ahead of Ramadan.
Second, direct discourse that strengthens the moderate Palestinian leadership surrounding Abu Mazen.
This is an important move in the face of the expected instability the day after Abu Mazen.
Strengthening them may allow a bridge beyond the stormy days that await us with the change of generations in the Palestinian Authority. And regarding the PA, it is worth noting that faced with the alternative of the collapse of the Palestinian Authority and violent anarchy, strengthening the PA serves the Israeli interest.
Third, the renewal of security coordination - this is a move that will reduce friction with the Palestinian population, thus helping to separate the population from terrorism.
The operation of the Palestinian security forces increases governance, law and order in the territories of the Palestinian Authority, and to a certain extent it reduces the burden on our forces.
Above all, the Israeli government must put order in the prioritization of the burning issues.
It must act to lower the internal tension in Israeli society and act to prevent the deepening of the deep polarization, which is only ever expanding.
The resilience of Israeli society is a critical element in Israel's coming to face what is expected of it in the coming months in the context of national security.
The burning issues do not freeze in place: Iran continues to enrich uranium, we are on the way to continued violence in the Palestinian arena, and we can do many more things in expanding normalization.
But the internal destructive preoccupation with the unrestrained onslaught to weaken the judiciary, in the face of all the criticism, without slowing down, prevents us from this necessary focus.
This issue, as well as other strategic issues, will be at the center of the discourse that will take place today as part of the annual international conference of the INSS.
The Minister of Defense, the Minister of Intelligence, the head of the National Security Council and senior officials from the security systems, in Israel and abroad, will participate in an open dialogue, which I hope will present insights to deal with the explosive times in which we find ourselves.
The author is a general (res.), director of the Institute for National Security Studies INSS, former head of the National Security Agency.
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