THE SECURITY FENCE IS WORKING

IDF: Palestinian Terror Declining - Arieh O'Sullivan (Jerusalem Post)
A senior IDF officer on Wednesday said security forces' actions enabled a 44% drop in the number of terror victims in 2004 compared to 2003. While suicide bombings accounted for just 0.4% of all attacks by Palestinians over the past four years, they were responsible for nearly half the fatalities - 502 victims. The officer attributed the decline in terror casualties to the security fence and highly improved intelligence.

The low intensity conflict has reshaped the IDF, with troops in artillery, engineering, and armored units trained and deployed as infantry. According to the army, a quarter of the nearly 4,000 suspected Palestinian fugitives arrested were nabbed at roadblocks. For the first time, a senior officer said there were indications that motivation among Palestinians to conduct terror attacks was on the decline due to the difficulty of carrying out a "successful" attack. In addition, IDF arrests and targeted interceptions of terrorists have decimated their cells in Judea and Samaria. However, the IDF believes Hamas is trying to obtain poisons and other components necessary for a mega attack.