University of Haifa/

Suicide Terrorism in Israel

Author(s): Nurit Kliot
Source: Horizons in Geography / ‫אופקים בגיאוגרפיה‬, No. 61-60 (2004 ‫)תשס״ד‬, pp. 345-354
Published by: University of Haifa/
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/70006035
Accessed: 09/12/2010 03:53

Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use, available at
http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp. JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use provides, in part, that unless
you have obtained prior permission, you may not download an entire issue of a journal or multiple copies of articles, and you
may use content in the JSTOR archive only for your personal, non-commercial use.

Please contact the publisher regarding any further use of this work. Publisher contact information may be obtained at
http://www.jstor.org/action/showPublisher?publisherCode=uhaifa.

Each copy of any part of a JSTOR transmission must contain the same copyright notice that appears on the screen or printed
page of such transmission.

JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of
content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms
of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org.

University of Haifa/ is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Horizons in
Geography / .

http://www.jstor.org
 .J.O,Maos .M Inbar and .D.F Shmueli (eds.) :2004 Contemporary Israeli Geography
(Special Issue of Horizonsin ,Geography.vol ,60-61) 345-354

SuicideTerrorismin Israel

Nurit Kliot
Departmentof Geography and Environmental ,Studies University ofHaifa
:e-mailnuritk@geo.haifa.ac.il

Introduction

TerrorismhasprevailedintheIsraeli-Jewish-Palestinian
continuingconflictsincethebeginning
ofJewishsettlementin.Eretz-Israel-Palestine
Duringthelast85 yearsithas appearedinvarious
formsand at different
levels of.intensity
In thispaperonlyone formofthisterrorism will be
:exploredsuicideterrorismduringthefirst‫״‬Intifada‫״‬(Arabic forUprising)between1994 and
,1997 and thesecond Intifada(September2000-August,2003) as well as therelative-low
intensity
terrorperiodin between.(1998-2000)

The drystatistics whichtell thestoryofterrorism in Israel/Palestine

are:appallingIn the15
yearsbeforethesigningoftheOslo Agreement (1993) 254 Israeliswerekilled interror
;attacks
in thesevenyearsafterthesigningoftheOslo Accords ,Agreement 300 Israeliswerekilled
in such .attacks,Moreover betweenSeptember2000 - June,2003 817 Israelis and 2,341
Palestinianwerekilledinsome18,125terror ,attacks
guerrilla,fighting
andmutual.assassinations
These numberspointsharplyto thenatureofIsraeli-Palestinian ,warfarewhich can no more
be referredto as a ‫״‬low-intensity
.conflict‫״‬

Thispaperwill focuson suicideterrorism in,Israelwhichis onlyonecomponent inthecomplex

Israeli Palestinian.conflictThis gruesomefacetofterrorism was selectedforstudybecause
of its effectivenessand impacton Israeli .societyThe studywill attemptto highlightsome
aspectsofsuicideterrorism which are less :investigated
thespatio-temporal aspectsofsuicide
:terrorism itsfluctuationalong thetimeaxis and itsdistribution in .space The firstpartofthe
paperwillpresent theconceptualframework forterrorism
.researchIn thesecond,partPalestinian
terrorism willbe analyzedwithinthisconceptual.framework The thirdpartwillpresentan
analysisofdataand the.conclusions

Conceptual-TheoreticalFramework

The threefollowingdefinitionsofterrorism reflectwell themain purposeof:terrorismto

terrorize
non-combatant
targetsin orderto achievepolitical .goals

‫״‬The unlawfuluse offereeor violence againstpersonsorproperty

to intimidate
or coerce
a ,government thecivilian populationor anysegmentthereofin furtherance
ofpolitical
andsocial objectives‫״‬,(F.B.I quotedinWhittaker:2003 .3)

‫״‬Terrorismis the,premeditatedpoliticallymotivated,violenceperpetuated
against-non
combatanttargetsby subnational
groupsorclandestine
,agentsusuallyintended
to influence
an audience‫״‬.(U.S StateDepartmentquotedin Whittaker:2003 .3)
346 Nurit
Kliot

‫״‬Terrorismis violenceorthethreat
ofviolenceusedanddirectedinpursuit
,oforinservice
ofapolitical aim‫(״‬Hoffman.1998)

The purposeofterrorism is to terrorize by killing ordinary.people When innocentcitizens

become victimsof,violence theincidentis regrettable only in theeyes ofthegovernments
;concernedto theterrorist it is partofhis .tradeHis objectis to shakethefaithofthe-man-in
the-street
in theGovernment and its local representatives
- especiallythepolice - so thatin
theend a desperatepopulationwillseeksecuritynotfromtheauthorities butfromtheterrorist
andhispoliticalallies (Burton:1975 .6)

There are two key componentsof terrorist :activity the definitionof grievancesand the
identificationofan .audienceGrievancesthatfoster terrorism mayresultfrombeingexcluded
fromparticular political arenassuchas participationin .government Terrorists
simultaneously
addresstwo different .audiencesOne is thegeneralpublic thattheterrorist wishes to ,reach
theotheris a moreselective,audiencethepotentialrecruits (Flint:2003 .55) This is thereason
thatterrorists
are so anxiousto assumepublicityfortheir.activitiesBasically theperpetration
ofviolence is assuredofwide and efficient,press.t.vandradio,coveragehoweverminutethe
organizationand marginalthesupportamongthe.population

It is important
to stressthatterrorism
is successfulin inducingfearbecauseitexposescivilians
to attackswhichhavea randomqualityso thateveryonefeelsless .safeTerrorists seekto exploit
theeveryday thingsthatpeople,dotheplacesthey,visitroutinizeddailylivingandthefunctioning
of.institutions
The seemingrandomness ofterrorist
attacksincreasespublicanxietyconcerning
terrorism,(CutterRichardsonWilb^nks :2003 .2)

Suicide Terrorism

Suicide terrorism
is a sub-categoryofterrorism whichappearedin the1980s and 1990s ofthe
20thcenturyin diverselocationssuch as Sri ,Lanka ,TurkeyLebanon and .Israel Its most
prominent featureis thereadinessofterroriststo sacrificetheirlives forthecause and their
beliefin.martyrdom This feature
turnssuicideterrorismintoan irrationalphenomenon among
manyobservers(Crenshaw.2001)

A suicide operationis a terror

attackin which thesuccess oftheattackdependson thedeath
ofthe.perpetratorThe twomassiveexplosionsin Beirut(1983) and subsequentsuicideattacks
againstIsraeli and .U.S targets
in Lebanon and Kuwait werethefirstin a long line ofsuch
,attacks
whichhavebecomefrequent occurrencesintheMiddle East,(Lebanon,Israel,Kuwait
Saudi Arabia) andinSri Lanka (Sprinzak.2000)

Suicide terrorismhas inherent

tacticaladvantagesoverconventional:terrorism itis a simple
and low cost,operationit guarantees
mass casualtiesand extensivedamagesince thesuicide
bombercan choose theexact ,timelocation and circumstancesofthe,attackand it has an
immenseimpacton thepublic and themedia due to an overwhelmingsenseofhelplessness
(Sprinzak.2000) Recruiters(of potentialsuicidebombers)will oftenexploitreligiousbeliefs
whenindoctrinatingwould-be,bombersbutotherpowerfulmotivesreinforce tendencies toward
SuicideTerrorism
inIsrael 347

,martyrdomincluding ,patriotismhatredof the enemy and a profound sense of .victimization

Since suicide terrorismis an organizational ,phenomenon the struggle against it cannot be
conducted on theindividual .level Suicide terrorismis merelyone typeofmartyrdomvenerated
by certain cultures or religious .traditions

But Karmon (2000) remindsus ,that,fundamentallysuicide terrorismis a strategywith strong

political .motivations It succeeded in halting thepolitical negotiationsbetween theTamils and
the Sinhalese in Sri Lanka afterthe assassination ofRajiv Gandhi in the laterpartofthe 1990s
and it stopped the Israeli-Palestinian peace process in the .mid-1990s ,Altogether some 15
terrororganizations in 12 differentstates turned to suicide terrorismagainst their .enemies
Schweitzer (2001) counted about 275 suicide attacks,world-wide by .2000 The numbertoday
is near 300 suicide ,attackswith the most horrific one of 11.9.01 overshadowing all the .rest
The ‫״‬newer‫ ״‬formsof suicide terrorismaim at massive physical destructionand the creation
of a traumaticstate of fear and anxiety on the whole population (Schweitzer .2001)

Suicide terrorismappeared forthe firsttime in April 1983 in Lebanon when the Shiite terror
organization of Hizbullah launched their firstattacks on Israeli and western .targetsThese
attackswere successful and effectivein pushing out of Lebanon all foreign armies (except the
Syrian .army) Other Muslim groups such as the ,Kurds or the Tamils in Sri Lanka followed
the Hizbullah in adopting suicide terrorismas both strategyand tactics to win their .war
Hizbullah was also the source of inspiration forthe Hamas and Islamic Jihad in theirsuicide
attacks against Israeli targets- almost all civilian .targets

Palestinian Terrorism in :Context Between Theory and Practice

Palestinian terrorismgrew out ofthe Palestinian resistancemovementagainst .Israel There had

been attacksagainst Israeli settlementssince the statecame into ,being but it was only afterthe
war of 1967 and the occupation of the West Bank that a major terroristcampaign .began

According to Laqueur ,(1999) the pressure eventually exerted by the Arab states supporting
the Palestinians throughthe major ,powers combined with the first,Intifada brought about
concessions fromIsrael (Laqueur :1999 .32) ,However frustrationoftheslow implementation
of the Oslo Accords encouraged not only the opposition to the PLO (the Hammas and the
Islamic Jihad)to acceleratesuicide :attackstheFatah throughitsAl-Aqsa Brigades also adopted
this formof terrorismagainst .Israel ,Most ifnot all Palestinian terror/guerrilla
actions were
and still are designated as ,revenge vengeance or response to the Israeli continuing ,occupation
and againstIsraeli retaliatorypunishment.policy Palestinian terrorismis neitherruralnor urban
in its pure .form Its bases are the urban centersand theiradjacent refugeecamps in Gaza and
the West .Bank The activity space of Palestinian terrorismare Jewish settlements(urban and
rural) in the West Bank and Gaza and transportation
axes and networkswithin these.territories
Another activity space is Israel within the Green Line - large urban centers ,(Jerusalem Tel
,Aviv Haifa) with close proximity and easy access to theWest :Bank ,Afula ,Hadera .Netanya
The patternsofPalestinian terrorismin cities certainlyconfirmthat‫״‬cities provide ,opportunity
multitudeof,targets,mobility ,communication anonymityand audience‫ ״‬a description thatfits
348 Nurit
Kliot

perfectlyboth the Palestinian urban bases of ,terrorismlike ,Hebron Nablus ,Jeninand Israeli
urbantargetsin which many Palestinians were employed and could always find enough support
and .refuge

From the common terrorist,techniques the most frequentlyused are bombs and bombing and
shooting .attacks ,Kidnapping ,hijacking ,extortion damage to propertyor arson are seldom
.used ,Interestinglythe Palestinians very seldom choose political figures as theirtargetsfor
assassination ‫ ־‬unlike popular terrortactics in other.countries ,Also unlike terrorismin other
parts of the ,world Palestinian terrorismseldom seeks infrastructural
targets(except forbuses
and bus .stations)

The next section will examine very closely theparticularterrorattacksof suicide bombing and
othermass casualty Palestinian terrorismin .Israel

Palestinian Mass Casualty (Suicide) Terrorism in Israel

Palestinian mass casualty terrorismin Israel is compares of various suicide ,bombings either
by a person or persons who detonate ,themselves or by means of car bombs which explode
with the .terrorists

Fluctuation of Suicide Terror Attacks along the Time Axis

The intensityof Palestinian mega terrorattacks during 1994 - 2000 was relatively low - 166
Israelis were killed in that,period on average 23 dead per year forthe seven .years The average
is misleading as for a couple of years ,(1998 1999) therewas only one .casualty The rate of
casualties in this firstperiod was less than 1 promil ofthetotal.population In thesecond ,period
between 2001 and 2003 the number of victims was :higher 430 dead or on average for each
ofthe threeyears - about 140 people - also less than 1 promil ofthepopulation butthenumber
and frequencyof the mass casualty terrorincidents in the last threeyears was both significant
and elicited massive .attentionThere were 37 suicide bombings in 2001 - between 3-4 attacks
every monthwith five attackson December of 2001 and 27 people killed in suicide bombings
in thatmonth.alone In 2002,45 mass casualty attackstook .place March 2002 was the deadliest
and most horrible :month 13 suicide bombings with 76 ,victims including one mass casualty
terrorattack at Park ,Hotel ,Netanya in which 29 people were massacred during a Passover
.meal Altogether 236 people were murderedin that,year which broughtharshretaliation from
.Israel In the first eight months of ,2003 13 suicide terrorattacks were launched by the
Palestinians in which more than96 Israelis .died One of thebloodiest was the attackin the old
bus station in Tel Aviv and the attack in August of 2003 on Orthodox Jews returningfrom
prayersat theWailing :Wall 22 people perished in this terror.attack Tables 1,2 and Figure 1
presentthe fluctuationof terrorattacks along a time ,axis including ,monthsyears and Jewish
holidays or special events and dates which were selected by the Palestinian terroristsas .targets

Table 1 shows an almost even distribution of suicide terrorattacks in all the months of the
years with peaks in March-April and .May 42 percentof the attackstook place in this period
which covers important:holidays ,Passover ,Purim Memorial Day and Independence .Day The
 SuicideTerrorism
inIsrael 349

Table :1 Distributionof Suicide BombingAttacksaccordingto datesand numberofvictims

Year 1994 1995 1996 1997199819992000 2001 2002 2003 Total
Montlh attacks per
month
January 22.1 1.1 25.1 5.1 5
27.1
February 25.2 16.2 6
25.2 18.2
25.2 27.2
March 1.3 2.3 5.3 17
27.3 5.3 IV31.3
28.3 7.3
9.3
17.3
20.3
21.3
127.3
29.3
30.3
31.3
11131.3
April 6.4 9.4 4.4 21.4 | 4.4 10.4 24.4 14
13.4 9.4 (Purim)(Purim) 22.4 12.4 30.4
(memorial
day 3.4 24.4
ceremony) (Purim)
May 18.5 7.5 16.5 10
25.5 19.5 18.5
29.5 22.5 19.5
(Pentacost)27.5
June 1.6 5.6 11.6 7
2.6 11.6
28.6
29.6
July 24.7 30.7 9.7 17.7 8.7 7
16.7 30.7
August 21.8 8.8 4.8 13.8 8
9.8 5.8 20.8
12.8
September 4.9 4.9 v18.9 6
7.9 19.9
9.9
October 9.10 29.10 26.10 7.10 10.10 9
19.10 17.10 21.10
27.10
November 11.11 6.11 29.11 4.11 6
21.11
%28.11
December 22.12 111.12 6
2.12
5.12
9.12
12.12
Total Attacks 5 5 5 3 2 0 2 28 39 12 101
Total killed 37 38 60 24 I 0 1 83 225 96
I - 28.4.02Independence
Day IV - Passover
week
II - December2001 ‫ ־‬Rammadanmonth V ‫ ־‬Anniversaryof Sabra and Shatillamassacre
III ‫־‬27.3.02EveningofPassover
350 Nurit
Kliot

Table :2 ,Locationnumberofincidentsandcasualtiesas a resultofMass TerrorAttacksinthe

years 1994-2003
Location 2001 2002
199419951996199719982000* 2003 Total Total Total
No killedinjured
Jerusalem 1 1 3 2 1 5 13 5 30 234 2011
TelAviv 1 1 1 1 5 2 11 99 640
RamatGan 1 1 6 32
Holon 1 1 8 25
PetahTiqva 1 1 2 37
Herzliya 1 1 1 15
RishonZion‫־‬Le 2 18 95
KfarSaba 1 1 1 3 4 162
NearOrYehuda 1 1 8
Haifa 2 ‫**ן‬ 2 7 56 193
KiryatMotzkin 1
Netanya 3 2 1 6 40 428
Afula 1 1 1 3 12 124
Hadera 1 1 1 3 5 98
BethLidd ‫**ן‬ 1 2 21 50
Binyamina 1 1 2 11
Nahariya 1 1 3 90
YironValleyMei 2 5 7*# 42 151
AmiCamp80
JordanValley ‫**ן‬ 2 3 1 6
Beth-Shean
Valley 1 1 2 7 60
Gaza 1 3 2 1 7 14 113
NetzarimJunction 1 1 2
KfarDarom 1 1
QatifRoadblock 1 1 2
Kissufim 1 1
Roadblock
Ariel 2 1 3
WestBank 2 2 2 6 5 92
Roadsand 1 1 1 3 27 95
junctions
Other Modi‫׳‬inKfarYaavetz5 22 119
Gelilot‫־‬Pi
RoshHaayin
Zerifm
Total 5 5 5 3 2 4 30 41 21 116 629 4655
* Theyear1999hadno massterror .attacks
For,2002incidents
arecounteduntil,November
for
2003until.August
** Attacksattransportation
nodessuchas junctions
andbusorhitchhiking
.stops

Palestinianterrorists
attemptedto assassinateand injureas manycivilians as possible during
theholidaysin orderto disrupttheholiday.festivitiesMarch 2002 was conspicuousby the
numberofattacksand numberofvictims- 81 ‫ ־‬a verytraumatizing monthforIsraeli.society
Decemberof2001 was also outstanding with5 attacksand 26 .casualtiesAnotherbad month
was June2002 with44 victimsofsuicide.attacks
SuicideTerrorism
inIsrael 351

January % % %% %

February % %%
%%%
% %% %%%%
March % %%
%%%%
April % % % %% %% %%

May % %% %%%%% %%

June %% %%%%

July % % %% %%

August % % %% %%

September % % %% %%

October % % %% % %%

November% % % % %%

December % % %%

1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003

Figure :1 Temporaldistributionof suicide bombings:attacks1994 throughAugust .2003

,Finallywe have to ask whether time-basedanalysisofsuicideterror attacksreveala random

.patternAs stated,beforeterrorismis describedas randomin space and ,time,namelythatany
,place anypersonat any,timecan become a .target,Fundamentally table 1 pointedto some
peaksduringtheyearin whichattacksweremore.frequent Also important is thefactthatthere
is no singlemonthduringthe10-yearperiodofthestudyinwhichno attacks took:place suicide
terrorism appears.consistent

DistributionofSuicide Terror Attacksalong theSpace Axis

The locationalpattern
ofsuicideterror
attacksandthechoiceofparticulartargets
couldinsinuate
a possiblerandomornon-random .pattern
Table 2 presents
thedataon thelocationandcharacter
of .targets

Locational attributesofmasscasualtyterror.attacksThe 107 terrorattacksare classified

accordingto settlementsand:regions18 urbansettlementsand 5 :regions2 in Israelin its-pre
1967 borders(Beth ,SheanIronValley) and3 in theoccupiedterritories(Jordan,Valley West
Bank and .Gaza) Among all theurban,centersJerusalem standsoutin thenumberofattacks
and theirtotalnumberof.victimsBetween1994 andAugustof,2003 Jerusalem sustained30
mass casualtyattacksin which 234 people werekilled and 2011 .injuredTel Aviv suffered
from11 attacksin which 99 people werekilled and 640 .injuredIfwe includeothercities
withinthemetropolitan areaofTel Aviv (Ramat,Gan ,Holon Petah,Tikva Or Yehuda)we add
352 Nurit
Kliot

5 terror
,attacks16 peoplekilled and 102 .injuredIn thecentreofIsraelveryneartoTel ,Aviv
we can add also theattacksin Rishon Le ,Zion KfarSaba and .Herzliya This patternclearly
shows thegreatvulnerabilityofthecentralareas ofIsrael which are highlyurbanizedand
densely.populated

Otherlocationsofterrorism were,NetanyaAfulaand.HaderaNetanyasuffered fromsix attacks

in which 40 people died and 428 were.woundedThereweretwo attacksin Afula and three
in .Hadera In thenorthern partof ,Israel Haifa sustainedfive attacksand suburbofKiryat
,Motzkin was thetarget ofone .attackNot ,surprisinglyGaza andtheWestBank sustained10
and 7 ,attacks.respectivelyIron,Valley a majortraffic,artery
was a targetforsix attacksand
Beth SheanValley and JordanValley had twoattacks.each We can differentiate betweentwo
majorperiodsin relationto thegeographicaldispersalofterror .attacksBeforetheyear,2000
thenumberofattackswas smallerand limitedto ,Jerusalem Tel ,Aviv ,Afula ,Hadera-Beth
Lidd and Gaza (Therewereno mass casualtyattacksin theWestBank thoughotherformsof
terrorattacksdid occur in thatarea.) This patternchangedbetween:2001-2003 thenumber
ofattackswas morethantwiceas highand thedispersal:largermoreandmorelocationswere
selected for terrorattacks by the terroristsand no one can feel safe in his .home

It is noteworthy thatmanyofthesettlements and regionswhich were selectedas targetsare

in close proximityto thePalestinianterritories and are locatedon themajorroad access from
thePalestinianterritories,(Jerusalem ,Afula,HaderaIron,Valley.Netanya)This was familiar
territoryto ,Palestinianseitherfromworkingearlieremployment ,thereor fromintelligence
gathered by otherswho had good knowledgeofthe.targets Anotherprominent featurerevealed
fromTable 2 is thatthereis a relativelysmallnumberofsuicidebombingson Israelisettlements
in theWest Bank - perhapsthe securityarrangements deterredpotential.perpetrators The
locationalpattern ofsuicideterror attackswhichincludeso manysettlements in Israelwithin
theGreenLine maybe interpreted ,in at ,leasttwo different.ways ,FirstforthePalestinian
‫״‬cause‫״‬thereis no difference betweenthe‫״‬old‫ ״‬or ‫״‬new‫״‬Israel in ,Gaza WestBank and the
JordanValley - all are legitimatetargetsfortheirwar of.independence,Second ifthemain
motivationsforPalestinianterrorism is revengeand vengeanceagainstoccupationoftheir
territories
and thekilling ofmanyPalestinian,civilians thenhurting Israelin its‫״‬softbelly‫״‬
in theheartofIsrael and killing as manycivilians as ,possible satisfiesthose.motivations

Examinationofthelocationalpatternandtargetselectioninterrorattacks
whichwereanalyzedin
thispapercanleadtoa preliminary
conclusioninrelationtotheir.randomness
Clearlysomelocations
,(Jerusalemforexample)aremoresusceptibleand vulnerablethan,othersand sometargets are
moreproneto terrorattacksthanothers,(busesbus .stations)

Final Concluding Remarks and Policy Implications

This paperattempted to highlightsome oftheparticularistic

features
ofsuicide terror
attacks
- mostlysuicideattackswhichfeatureprominentlyintheIsraeli,mediaIsraelpolityandpolicy
makingandtheIsraeli.psyche

,Firstit is crucial to stressagain thattheterrorism

depictedin thispaperis only a partofthe
SuicideTerrorism
inIsrael 353

Israeli-Palestinian
,conflict
whichhasclaimedthelives ofso manyinnocent.peopleThispaper
did notattempt to comparethegeographicalpatternofIsraeli militaryraids on Palestinian
,communitiesnor did thepapertryto explore ifthereare any connectionsbetweenIsraeli
militaryoperationand Palestinian terrorattacks- this will be leftfor future.research

The paperfocusedonly on violence in theformof suicide bombingsand shootingswhich

compriseonly a portionofthePalestinianstruggleagainst.Israel It is also important
to note
thatmostsuicide attacksdid nottargetthe:militaryonly a fewtargetsof such attackswere
purely,militarybutmanysoldierswerekilled in attackson ,busesbus stopsor road.blocks

This paperdid notexplorethetradition ofsuicidebombingsadoptedbythevariousPalestinian

,organizationswhichnow competewitheach otherin launchingsuicide attacksin Israeland
theimplementing themythofmartyrdom amongwould-besuicide.bombersAll thosevariables
are certainlyinfluentialin thecreationofthespatio-temporal
patterns
ofthese.attacksThere
is room forfuture researchofthoseaspectsofterrorism thatmayhave possible implications
to thespatial-temporalanalysisoftheterror attackswhich were analyzedin this.studyFor
,examplewhatarethebehavioralimplicationsoftheabovementioned spatio-temporalpatterns
suchas avoidingcertainfacilitiesor transportation
means?

,Firstcan we advisethesecurityforcesin Israelto stopall theroadblocksand security-check

upsinmonthssuchas theFall orWintermonths? Can we recommend thatsecurityarrangements
will be reinforcedin themonthsof,March-Mayinwhichmostoftheattacks takeplace?Terror
attacksareusuallycarefully plannedand.preparedTerrorists areopportunists - ifcertain,targets
at certain,hourswill be less guarded‫ ־‬theywill be pickedup bywould-be.terrorists Thereis
sufficientevidencefromsuicidebombingswhich,failedeither bysecurity guards(Five security
guardspaid withtheirlives whentheypreventedtheaccess ofsuicide bombersto crowded
areassuch as shoppingmalls or railwaystations)or by securityarrangements which forced
theterroristto choosean alternative
,target
whichdid notproducetheexpected.resultsItwould
also be extremely recklessto suggestthat.Tiberias Zefator KiryatShmonashouldnothave
any securitycheck-upsor securityguardsbecause theywereneverselectedas .targetsThere
is a verylow probabilitythatPalestinianterrorists
wouldbe successfulorwillingtoreachsuch
remotetargets whenmoreaccessible and closertargets are and .available

The locationalpattern and targetselectionas seen in Table 2 showsthatmostIsraeliscan ,be

,randomly victimsof.terror Avoidanceas a possiblestrategy ofself-preservation
is limitedin
its ,success,becauseeventuallypeople have to ventureintopublic .space For thenear,future
Israeliswillcontinueto live in an a garrison-like
stateandtryto erectfencesandwalls to keep
perpetrators .away

,Nonethelesslong experiencein otherpartsoftheworld in which terrorwas embeddedhas

shown thatunless the rootcauses of conflictswhich perpetuateterrorismare dealt ,with
eradicationofterrorism
is ,impossibleparticularly
thesubtypeofsuicideterrorismwhichhas
becomehighlyreveredand sanctionedin some culturesand fundamental .societies
354 Nurit
Kliot

References

,Burton.A :1975 Urban

,Terrorism
New :YorkThe Free.Press

,Crenshaw.M :2001‫״‬SuicideTerrorism
inComparative
Perspective‫״‬
:in.B Ganor,(ed.) Countering
Suicide
:Terrorism
An International
,Conference
:Herzliya The Interdisciplinary
Center ,Herzliya .21-24

,Cutter,S. ,Richardson
.D.B and ,Wilbanks.T.J:2003 TheGeographical
Dimension
of.Terrorism
New
Yorkand:London.Routledge
,Flint.C :2003 ‫״‬Geographies
ofInclusion/Exclusions‫״‬
:in ,Cutter
,S. ,Richardson
.D.B and,Wilbanks
.T.J,(eds.) The Geographical
Dimensions
of .Terrorism
:London ,Routledge.53-58
,Hoffman
.B :1998 Inside
,Terrorism
:LondonVictorGolan

,Karmon.E :2000 ‫״‬Trendsin Contemporary

International
Terrorism,‫״‬
:in.B Ganor,(ed.) Countering
Suicide
:Terrorism
An International
,Conference
:Herzliya The Interdisciplinary
Center,Herzliya.30-46
,Kent.R :1993‫״‬Geographical
DimensionoftheShiningPathInsurgency
in .Peru‫ ״‬TheGeographical
,Review
,83(4) .441-454

,Laqueur.W :1999TheNew.Terrorism
OxfordNew :York OxfordUniversity
.Press

,Schweitzer
.Y :2001 ‫״‬Suicide:Terrorism
Development
andMain Characteristics‫״‬
:in .B Ganor,(ed.)
Countering
Suicide:Terrorism
An International
,Conference
:Herzliya The Interdisciplinary Center
,Herzliya
.75-85

,Sprinzak.E :2000 ‫״‬RationalFanatics,‫״‬

Foreign
,Policy
,Sept./Oct
.66-73

,Whittaker
.D (ed.) :2001 TheTerrorism
.Reader
:London.Routledge

SourcesforData Analysis

B‫׳‬Tselem- HumanRights:Organization
AnnualReports
.1990-2003

,Crenshaw.M .(1995) Terrorism

in .Context
:PhiladelphiaPennsylvaniaState University.Press

Ha‫׳‬aretz
IsraelDaily - Coverageofall newsonterror
.attacks

YediotAhronot
- Israeli.DailyAll dataonIsraeliPalestinian
attacks
and.clashes

Maariv- IsraeliDaily - all dataonIsraeli/Palestinian

.clashes

Keesing,sContemporary
:ArchivesdataonIsraeliPalestinian
.clashes

,Karmon.E :2000 in Countering

Suicide
,Terrorism
International
PolicyInstitute
for.Counter-Terrorism
.Herzliya