Deport the inciters

In 2001, immediately after the Sbarro pizza parlor in Jerusalem was blown up, the Israeli cabinet adopted a series of steps I had recommended to counter the wave of suicide bombings. The steps I had proposed, as the Shin Bet security agency chief, included the deportation of Palestinian Authority officials from their Jerusalem offices and shutting down Orient House, from where the PA conducted political affairs in the capital.

"This was the toughest measure Israel took against the Palestinians during the [Second] Intifada," then-Palestine Liberation Organization Chairman Yasser Arafat said.

Israel must spare no time in carrying out deportations. The attacks in Jerusalem on Tuesday were carried out by Arab residents of Jerusalem who were issued blue identity cards. Such cards granted them permanent residency status even though they were not citizens. As a result, they could claim various benefits from the National Insurance Institute (including unemployment insurance), as can their families. They were also covered by Israel's universal health care system and enjoyed other social benefits.

Those who are behind terrorism and help terrorists perpetrate their attacks, including those who knew about Tuesday's plot but did not prevent it, should be deported to PA-held areas. We must spare no time in hunting down the terrorists' enablers in Jerusalem -- including family members and friends. Because they hold blue identity cards (and are not full-fledged citizens), they can be deported to the Palestinian Authority. It used to be difficult to carry out such deportations because no host country was willing to accept terrorists. But nowadays it is easy to hand them over to the Palestinian Authority. By doing so, they will be fully tethered to the teat they have suckled for so long, and on behalf of which they have carried out attacks against Israelis (both within and beyond the Green Line).

On top of deportation, Israel should revoke their permanent resident status. As temporary residents they will no longer receive the above-mentioned social benefits. There is a rationale behind this approach. Deportation and the denial of benefits will establish deterrence in a way that complements the military crackdown; it will place pressure on the families that produce potential terrorists.

The Palestinians Authority, Hamas and the Islamic Movement have successfully exploited the recent spate of terrorism to sow fear and terrorize the residents of Israel. But the leaders of those entities have not been held accountable for their actions. Hamas has been sending inciting messages from the Gaza Strip over toward Israeli Arab towns, to the residents of Judea and Samaria, and to Jerusalem's Arab neighborhoods. Palestinian Authority officials have turned a blind eye and plugged their ears because they don't want to deal with the incitement spewing out of their official mouthpieces. Arab social media is saturated with hateful rhetoric and incitement, and the Islamic Movement has continued to fan the flames by spreading the same lie it has been spreading for the past 20 years: "Al-Aqsa Mosque is in Danger."

"Al-Aqsa" is not in danger, but a family that supports terrorism and helps its members and their acquaintances perpetrate attacks in Israel will now be in danger of being deported and stripped of their rights. This policy must be put into effect without delay.

MK Avi Dichter was the head of the Shin Bet security agency and the public security minister.

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