Israel revealed on Nov. 14 that it has deployed Iron Dome anti-missile batteries along its border with the Gaza Strip and in the greater Tel Aviv area. The move follows assessments that Gaza-based Islamic Jihad is planning reprisals against Israel for blowing up a tunnel dug for conducting terror attacks in Israel and for Israel holding the bodies of those killed during the tunnel's destruction.
On Nov. 11, in a bid to deter Islamic Jihad, Maj. Gen. Yoav Mordechai, head of Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories, recorded a video for uploading to YouTube in which he delivered a warning in Arabic: “We advise the leadership of the Islamic Jihad in Damascus to be careful and to control matters. The commander of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Damascus and leaders of the organization — Ramadan Shalah and Ziad Nakhale — take quick control of things, because you will be held responsible.” In his urging, Mordechai clearly marked Israel’s target. In short, if Islamic Jihad dares attack Israel, its leadership will be wiped out. Plan and simple.
The other side got the message, loud and clear. The Al-Quds Brigades, Islamic Jihad’s military wing, issued a statement, saying, “The enemy’s threats to harm the organization’s leaders are a declaration of war, and we will deal with them. These threats reveal the true intentions of the Zionists.”
On Nov. 2, the organization had issued a video showing its fighters setting up missiles and conducting observations of maintenance work by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on the border fence with Gaza designed to prevent, or at least make it harder, to tunnel from Gaza into Israeli territory. The clip ended with a message, in Hebrew: “Time is running out.” While the time frame is unclear, it could mean that the group’s response to Israel’s Oct. 30 bombing of its tunnel is near.
AL-MONITOR All-Access gives you unlimited access to all our journalism, the full Daily Briefing, exclusive interviews, premium newsletters, and live events — for less than $2/week.
