1) The ITIC reports on ‘Children in the Service of Palestinian Terrorism’.
“During the past three weeks children between the ages of 13 and 14 carried out three terrorist attacks in Jerusalem, two stabbing attacks and one shooting attack. They were not extraordinary because in effect, since the latest wave of Palestinian terrorism began in 2022, we have witnessed adolescents and even children participating in clashes with Israeli security forces and carrying out terrorist attacks. However, their ages have recently decreased significantly. If in the past the attackers were adolescents and young adults aged 16 or more, today they are children barely in their teens. The attacks and young attackers have been widely praised, especially on the social networks popular with that age group, which may encourage other children to emulate them.”
2) At the JCPA, Dr. Yechiel M. Leiter discusses the ‘Importance of Normalization of Relations between Israel and Sudan’.
“Significant progress has been made toward signing a peace agreement between Israel and Sudan. In his February 2, 2023, meeting with the Sudanese ruler, Abdel-Fattah al-Burhan, in Khartoum, Israeli foreign minister Eli Cohen finalized the text of a formal agreement between the two countries. While Sudan formally joined the Abraham Accords following the UAE, Bahrain, and Morocco, relations were frozen due to domestic opposition and political instability.
The al-Burhan government, which finds itself in a transitional phase, has decided that the groundwork has been laid and the timing is appropriate to move forward to a peace agreement. The significance of this development should not be overlooked or minimized. The bilateral benefits for both countries contain huge potential, and the geo-strategic ramifications for the entire region and beyond are likewise considerable.”
3) Writing at The Hill, Simon Henderson looks at the recent reports concerning Iranian uranium enrichment.
“Iran appears to have made a new and worrying advance in its nuclear program. Bloomberg reported on Sunday that it has reached the level of 84 percent enriched uranium, a significant advance on the 60 percent previously announced. The magic number needed for making an atomic bomb is 90 percent.
The new figure was discovered by monitoring equipment operated by the world’s nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). But the Bloomberg report did not reveal how much uranium enriched to this extent Iran has produced. The amount needed for a nuclear bomb is about a grapefruit-sized worth, which would weigh around 33 pounds. (Uranium metal is even more dense than lead.)”
4) At the Long War Journal, Joe Truzman discusses the use of social media by Palestinian terrorist groups.
“Between Gaza and the West Bank, there are approximately twenty active Palestinian militant organizations. Each group – to varying degrees – utilizes social media to spread its ideology, encourage attacks against Israelis and attract potential recruits.
Before the age of social media, Palestinian militant groups primarily used Mosques, schools and social service centers as a main conduit to circulate information regarding the organization’s activity. However, a significant shift occurred in 2014, when a seven-week-long conflict broke out in Gaza between the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Palestinian militant groups.“
5) At Newsweek Jonathan Schanzer asks ‘What Would a Third Intifada Mean for Palestinians?‘.
“Today, the data suggest another intifada is possible. A mapping project by the Foundation for Defense of Democracies identified more than 1,120 violent incidents in the West Bank and Israel since last March.
The young Palestinians who welcome an intifada are too young to remember the last one. A 20-year-old today would have been just two years old when it ended. And crucially, few Palestinians remember that all three uprisings were disasters for their people.”
