Three Israelis, Tomer Morad and Eytam Magini, aged 27, and Barak Lufan, aged 35, died following an attack with an automatic weapon on Thursday evening, April 7, in a bar in the Dizengoff Street, a trendy artery in the north of Tel-Aviv. The assailant injured about fifteen other people before fleeing. The attack was not directly claimed, but was immediately welcomed by Hamas and Islamic Jihad.
Four attacks since March 22
Hundreds of police, intelligence and soldiers embarked on a massive manhunt for the rest of the night. It was at dawn that the assailant, Raed Hazem, 28, son of a retired officer of the Palestinian security forces, and resident of the Jenin refugee camp, in the north of the occupied West Bank, was identified and killed.
Since March 22, Israel has been hit by four attacks, two carried out by Israeli Arabs linked to the jihadist organization Islamic State, and two by Palestinians from Jenin.
A few hours later, as Israeli police were preparing for a possible escalation of violence in Jerusalem on the first Friday of Ramadan, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett “total freedom of action” for “Overcome Terror” to its security forces, including intelligence. “There are and will be no limits to this war”he added.
A direct response to accusations of lax security
This firmness is not only intended to reassure the Israelis, but it is also a direct response to the opposition’s accusations of lax security. The Bennett government, which rests on a motley coalition of eight parties, has just lost its very narrow majority with the defection of Idit Silman, an MP from Prime Minister Naftali Bennett’s far-right party.
That same evening, thousands of Israelis went to Jerusalem to listen to Benyamin Netanyahu who was determined to exploit the situation to get back in the saddle. «They are weak against Iran, they are weak against terrorism»asserted the leader of the opposition, whom his camp always calls “Mr. Prime Minister”.
This new “wave of terrorism” seems to prove him right. But the violence could work both ways, argues Ofer Zalzberg, a political scientist at the Kelman institute for conflict transformation in Jerusalem: “It highlights the heterogeneity of government. His answer will be attacked by all the opposition, right and left, and he can crack under pressure. But if he holds on, the government could come out of it stronger.”.
Back home
Benyamin Netanyahu hopes that the return of Idit Silman to his original party will spread. He took the opportunity to exploit the theme of the Jewish values of the state. The Likud leader has made it his hobbyhorse, hoping to attract other members of the coalition who, like Idit Silman, live in nationalist religious communities.
The return of Benyamin Netanyahu is however far from certain. For now, the opposition does not have the 61 votes needed to dissolve Parliament. The Joint Arab List, which has six seats on the far left, hates former prime minister Netanyahu more than the current government. At least six parliamentarians from the ruling coalition should therefore take the risk of joining Idit Silman.
The Knesset will return from its annual truce in early May, after the end of Ramadan. The country could then remain in a state of advanced parliamentary paralysis, at least until the vote on the next budget, in March 2023, which, if it does not pass, could lead to elections.