The entire new concept of security, based on the notion that Israel should dig in and realign itself behind a fortified wall, crumbled at Kerem Shalom. Once and for all it was proven that there is no substitute for a strong IDF presence in areas where terrorists organize.

The evacuated area has been filled with dozens of sub-groups of terror organizations, and hundreds of armed cells receive weapons, some from “official” sources, some (mostly anti-tank weapons) which move freely across the Philadelphi Route – an additional Israeli mistake which was given over to Palestinian and Egyptian supervision.

Longing for the Old Middle East

The folks who traded IDF soldiers for enemy soldiers and even provided them with guns in the absurd hope they would do our security work
for us have indeed brought a new middle east upon us, one that makes us deeply nostalgic for the old one.

The more we progressed towards this new middle east and plans for “peace” with “yesterday’s” terrorists only caused our security position to worsen. There were 160 deaths by terrorism in the 12 years prior to the Olso Accords; since then, the number stands at 1,350 victims and counting.

The architects of Oslo have recently tried to whitewash the degree of the security catastrophe they caused us. A reminder: If before Olso they had a few dozen guns, now they’ve got tens of thousands.

Add on the money we’ve gotten for them, the basic and advanced military training (could it be that one of Sunday’s attackers participated in such training?) – and you’ve got the equation that led to the dramatic rise in terror attacks. And we’ve said nothing of the propaganda and communications equipment we’ve given them, that have become anti-Israel incitement tools.

No Regrets

More than the underlying concept of the Oslo process – bring terrorists from Tunis to Israel and they will fight their friends on our behalf – has collapsed like a house of cards. The promises made leading up to the Gaza pullout last year – “If they dare, we’ll reoccupy Gaza, confiscate their weapons and that will be the end of the Palestinian Authority” – are nowhere to be found.

But when it all blew up, the geniuses sat together and looked for a solution. Should we dismantle the PA, as promised? God forbid! Even now that we’ve got all the reasons in the world to explain to the international community exactly why the PA ceased to have any right to exist once it was transferred to Hamas control, the architects of this catastrophe refuse to admit publicly that they failed. This would be an unimaginable political catastrophe.

So what do you do? Come up with a substitute concept: Unilateral pullouts and withdrawing behind fortified walls. And once again: “Them over there, us here.”

Useless Fence

The months since disengagement have proven that a fence is no use against high-trajectory weapons, and that they are still “here,” in the living rooms of Sderot and Ashkelon. And Sunday, at Kerem Shalom, it was proved that the wall won’t even stop physical infiltration and direct shooting.

If we wait for them while hiding behind fortified walls, they will come with ladders and tunnels. But Israel is no widower, we’ve always got an answer: Since the tragic events of Sunday morning, government ministers have competed amongst themselves to warn the Palestinians about our “long arm” that would catch the attackers.

In the eyes of the attackers, that arm may have been significantly shortened over the past year. But Israeli society, generously spurred on by the media, continues to buy the product. And as long as there are buyers – there will be sellers.

And in the meanwhile, the terror victims are the ones to pay the real price.