In the wee hours of Monday morning, Esther Horgen, a mother of six, was found dead in a forest in Samaria, murdered in an especially brutal fashion. Later the same day a terrorist opened fire near the Temple Mount in Jerusalem; fortunately, police managed to shoot him dead before he was able to cause serious harm. Yoav Limor comments:
Horgen was the third person killed in terrorist attacks in 2020. This is a drop compared to the last two years—nine killed in 2019 (seven civilians and two members of the security forces) and sixteen killed in 2018 (nine civilians and seven members of the security forces). The drop is partly attributed to successful preventative measures implemented by the Israel Defense Forces and Shin Bet, but also to the coronavirus pandemic.
[The pandemic] has contributed to the low figures, but it has changed nothing in terms of motivation. Both organized terrorists—specifically guided by Hamas in Gaza—and localized cells, continue to plot attacks. As always, “lone-wolf” terrorists who act independently are also a constant concern. The murder of Horgen, it appears, was perpetrated by one of these lone-wolf terrorists, unlike the shooting attack in Jerusalem’s Old City later on Monday.
Israel’s security forces now must focus on two objectives. First, the terrorists behind both attacks on Monday must be apprehended before they act again (in the case of the Jerusalem cell, it is clearly armed and dangerous). Second, the security forces must nip in the bud any potential wave of copycat terrorism inspired by these attacks. The main challenge right now is to curb this wave before it swells.
Read more on Israel Hayom: https://www.israelhayom.com/opinions/curb-this-terror-wave-before-it-swells/