The infrastructure of terror
By Danny Rubinstein
Haaretz, December 15, 2003
The Arabic daily Al-Hayat, published in London, came out at the end of last week with its sixth and final interview with Khaled Meshal, head of the political wing of Hamas, who is also considered to be at the pinnacle of the Hamas leadership. This young movement (established in Gaza 16 years ago) demonstrated its strength some days ago at the Cairo talks. Despite pressures brought to bear by Egypt and other Arab states, the Palestinian Authority, and, indirectly, Europe and the United States - almost all the parties involved in the Middle East conflict - its representatives remained steadfast in their refusal to accept an official cease-fire with Israel.
Meshal, 47, born in the town of Silwad, east of Ramallah, expounded upon his political, religious, and personal worldview in the interview. He related the history of the movement, spoke of his son, Yihye, born on the same day that Yihye Ayash, the "engineer" who planned the first suicide bombings, was assassinated, and told about the attempt on his life by Mossad agents in Amman in September 1997.
The parts of the interview dealing with suicide bombings, which Meshal called "sacrifice actions," are especially interesting because these are the movement's hallmark. Hamas brought suicide bombings into the Middle East arena, and from time to time, such as during the past few days, reports appear suggesting they are in remission.
"The sacrifice [suicide] actions are all based on volunteers who carry them out from a sense of deep conviction, and not, as the Zionist enemy claims, because they are being misled and tempted," Meshal said. He reiterated this point and gave examples, partly because of the Palestinian criticism of Hamas leaders who, they say, send innocent young people to commit suicide - always someone else's children, never their own. Meshal claimed the list of volunteers for suicide missions is long and suitable candidates are selected by the movement's military wing. That was the case with 17-year-old Mohammed Farahat, for example, who was selected only after his mother joined her son's request. The mother wrote to the Hamas command in Gaza that her son was a man and she did not allow them to refuse him. Meshal explained that a volunteer for a suicide mission presents himself to the military wing of Hamas only after he is prepared religiously and psychologically; they then prepare him militarily and choose the time and place for the attack. According to Meshal, the Israeli and Palestinian forces are so unequally matched that they have no other way of injuring the enemy and such actions shake Israeli self-confidence. "The enemy makes us, and me personally, feel unsafe on the street, in school, and even at home. It is therefore my right to respond accordingly so that he, too, will lose his sense of security," Meshal declared.
The importance of Meshal's statements is that they provide a rather clear picture of the infrastructure of Palestinian suicide terror. It is built more on the existence of numerous volunteers, surrounded by a supportive community, and less on commands and the technicians who prepare the explosives. In other words, the pressure to carry out attacks comes mostly from below, from the suicide volunteers, and less from above, from the leadership making decisions at their meetings.
Therefore, defense against these actions must not focus on the construction of fences and barriers, raids, arrests, targeted killings, and punishments like the destruction of houses, which sometimes bloat terror, rather than reducing it.
