The Considerations of the Terrorist Organizations – Former head of the National Security Council explains: In a conversation with Israel Hayom, Brig. Gen. (res.) Meir Ben-Shabbat explained the considerations behind the procrastination of the terrorist organizations in response to the assassination of senior Islamic Jihad figures in the early hours of Tuesday morning. Ben-Shabbat, who currently heads the Misgav Institute for National Security and Zionist Strategy in Jerusalem, raises several hypotheses that can be used to explain what is happening in the minds of senior terrorists.
"Unlike in the past, the response of the terrorist organizations from Gaza to the assassination of senior Islamic Jihad figures by Israel is being delayed," Ben-Shabbat begins, adding that this is happening "despite the inflammatory statements by senior members of the organization and despite the announcement issued by the "joint operations room of the factions in Gaza."
Brig. Gen. (Res.) Meir Ben-Shabbat, Photo: Efrat Eshel
The first possibility raised by Ben-Shabbat is the effect of the surprise effect created by the Israeli attack in the early hours of the morning. "Islamic Jihad's desire is to begin the response with a surprising move," states the head of the National Security Council. "An anti-tank attack on roads near the Gaza Strip, an infiltration attack or the use of a tunnel are actions whose preparation requires additional preparation time."
Another possibility raised by Ben-Shabbat is that the decision on the nature of the response is not made by Islamic Jihad alone, and even that the wait may be the result of broader preparations. Ben-Shabbat states that there is a possibility that there is an "effort on the part of Jihad to motivate Hamas to participate in the fighting, or to allow more leeway than it currently allows," and Ben-Shabbat does not rule out that there is an "attempt to time the response with activity from another arena, which requires coordination and preparation."
Hamas Political Bureau Chairman Khaled Mashaal, coordination talks between the organizations could explain the delay, Photo: Reuters
Another explanation offered by the former head of the National Security Council is the jihad's desire to time the response into the wee hours of the night in order to give Israel a-for-tat response to its nighttime attack.
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