8-Jan-12: Terrorist outrage is blocked by quick thinking today at a security checkpoint

Border Policeman [Image Source]

There's a report coming from Jenin in the past hour that illustrates one of two possible narratives depending on how flexible you are on the subject of terrorism.

Four Palestinian Arabs were required to stop and be checked by yet another of those hideous and humiliating IDF security barriers earlier today (Sunday) where they were told to remove some of their clothing. The insult to their autonomy and manhood must have been unbearable and will very likely turn them hostile and unco-operative in their future interactions with Israelis.

That's one version. Here's another.

Some hours ago, four Palestinian Arabs were stopped at the Salem Crossing near Jenin in the northern West Bank and required to undergo a security check.

Here, according to Yaakov Katz from the Jerusalem Post is what happened next. The four were in line to walk into the Samaria Military Court. A member of the Israel Border Police (Mishmar Hagvul in Hebrew) watching them noticed there were wires protruding from under the jacket of one of the four. The soldiers promptly shut down the crossing, ordered the Palestinian to remove his clothing and found that he had three pipe bombs on his body. A further eight pipe bombs were found in his bag. So too was a pistol, several bullets and a commando knife. He and his three companions are now being interrogated.

The suspicion is they were there to carry out an attack on the Samaria Military Court. Israel National News says the four are from Balata, a village near Shechem (Nablus) in central Samaria.

A week ago, the IDF captured a number of weapons including an M-16 and an Uzi submachine gun in a residence in Kfar Salem, near Nablus, not far from Jenin. The Shin Bet reported a significant increase in the number of terrorist attacks in the West Bank during December (we reported on this last week: "1-Jan-12: Terror attack statistics climbed sharply in December").

Border Police doing what they do at a security checkpoint

For single-minded, religiously-impassioned individuals who are willing to die so long as they inflict pain on a despised enemy, there's an enormous amount of harm you can do to people's bodies with 11 pipe bombs, a pistol and a commando knife.

This time, an alert serviceman was quick enough and - with his security crossing colleagues - determined enough to prevent it.

But the thing about terrorism is you don't ever eliminate it by watchfulness. Yes, you can do your best to ensure that this attack or that plan is thwarted - put up barriers, install cameras, be vigilant etc. But so long as the jihadist process that creates this kind of hatred continues, and so long as it infects more and more young people growing to adulthood in Palestinian Arab society, the danger is constant and ends only when the terrorists themselves are completely neutralized.

How well is this understood outside Israel? Here's one way to tell. Watch to see how much interest the news media outside Israel take in this story.

As of 3:30 pm today, Israel time, no one other than Israeli channels is reporting it.