The operation in Jenin was received with immense joy among the residents of northern Samaria. After many months in which they demanded significant action in the area from which many attacks were launched, which claimed lives among their friends and acquaintances and severely damaged the sense of security, the IDF launched a necessary operation to eradicate terrorism.
Documentation: Airstrike in Jenin in broad daylight // Photo: Arab networks
"The feelings are very positive, because we see that something is finally happening," says Northern Samaria Security Forum member Michael Haddad. The forum was formed after the murder of Meir Tamari about a month ago.
"It's definitely a happy move, because so far, last month since Meir's murder, we felt like nothing was happening. However, we are already pushing for continued activity so that the operation will not be localized. Operation Guardian of the Walls included quite a few dead terrorists, but did not prove itself in practice to be a deterrent, and we hope that the current operation will be total and create long-term security."
Sharpen. "It's definitely gratifying,"
Samaria Council head Yossi Dagan has been pushing for months to launch an operation in northern Samaria. "Defensive Shield 2," he called it. According to him, the operation that began tonight in Jenin is an encouraging start, but we must continue to press the foot on the gas. "For ten months we have been screaming, shouting and demonstrating that we need to launch a comprehensive operation in northern Samaria and change the equation," he explains. "The settlement strengthens the security establishment and the government that made the decision to launch a military operation. Even if the decision was made too late, better late than never. The government should be encouraged to complete the task."
Dagan clarifies that if the operation ends within a few days, it will not be enough. "The operation cannot end as something specific, it must change the equation, like a defensive wall," he states. "The operation must not be stopped before the terrorist infrastructure is cut off, it must not be stopped before dealing not only with the cradles with guns and TikTok, but with terrorists in suits who send them and incite them. The rocket fired last week in northern Samaria illustrates that if there is no Operation Defensive Shield, we will have to get used to the concept of the northern Samaria envelope."
Corn. A few days are not enough, photo: Oren Cohen
"Need a sense of security"
Meanwhile, in the communities on the back of the mountain, near Nablus, residents are examining the operation in Jenin and waiting to see whether it involves a change in attitude throughout northern Samaria. "We are happy to see the activity north of us and pray for the safety of the fighters who take part in it," said a resident of Alon Moreh, who declined to be identified. "We exerted quite a bit of pressure, and we have many prayers that we will be the initiators and that the residents will really feel that their safety is taken care of, and not only after terror attacks."
Security forces in the Kasbah in Nablus (archive), photo: IDF Spokesperson
The operation, which is taking place in Jenin, does not solve the problem of the hornet's nest in Nablus, and therefore, she says, "We hope that after they solve the problems in Jenin, they will be able to deal with the collection of weapons, the setting up checkpoints and the creation of security here as well. It must be said that it is clear that the terrorists in our region are also observing the operation, and we assume that when general deterrence is created, it affects everything."
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