After months of relative quiet, the Palestinian front is again in the headlines.  Yesterday morning (Dec. 8) a 26-year-old Israeli woman was stabbed in front of her children as she was on her way to drop them off at daycare. The suspect, a Palestinian girl of 15, ran from the scene and was caught shortly afterwards. The condition of the victim was initially declared critical, but later the Hadassah hospital in Jerusalem, where she was taken, reported that her injuries were light. 

This is the sixth time in the past six weeks that a Palestinian attacker has shot, stabbed, or run over Israelis. Most of the attacks took place in the Old City of Jerusalem, but one was in the West Bank, and another in the city of Jaffa in Israel. 

Reportedly, Israeli security forces haven’t found any connection between the attackers. The basis is usually the personal distress of the attacker, who has given up on life or wishes to rebel, and to end life as a “hero." Two days ago, a 16-year-old boy from Nablus fought with his father, stole his car, and drove fast in order to run over Israelis at the Te’enim West Bank checkpoint next to Tulkarem. The youth struck the checkpoint at a speed of 100 km/hr, moderately injured an Israeli security guard, and was shot to death by other guards at the scene. 

The phenomenon that Israeli security forces call “the copycat effect” is probably also at work. The attack that inspired the current terrorist wave may have been the one in the Old City of Jerusalem on Nov. 21, where a young Jewish man, Eliyahu David Kay, was murdered near the Western Wall. Also, videos on social media showed a stabbing attack where a Jewish citizen was wounded at the Damascus Gate on Dec. 5.