Lucy Aharish is an Arab-Israeli reporter for i24news, where she became the first Arab presenter on a Hebrew-language television network. Recently, she commented on the recent rise in attacks against Israeli citizens from Palestinians, one of which was covered by Guy where a Palestinian ran into a crowded bus stop and brutally hacked a rabbi to death with a meat cleaver. The attacker was soon shot and killed by police. Guy added that Palestinian leaders are “blessing” these attacks, even though Palestinian Authority president, Mahmoud Abbas, said he was withdrawing from the Oslo Accords, which established the goal of creating a two-state solution.

Aharish also said there was “a horrific and deafening silence" from some Arab leaders, who are doing nothing to quell the violence–and are “adding fire to the environment instead of understanding that once it will calm down, we will be the ones to pay the high price.” She added how the Second Intifada took a heavy toll on Israeli Arabs and the Palestinians, and that this behavior will only lead to more of the same without learning from past mistakes. She also added that even if the status quo is broken on the Temple Mount (she admits that in reality it hasn’t, but if it had), she doesn’t understand how that justifies any killings.

And of course, Aharish also said that frustrations with the peace process, which is what some Palestinian leaders are saying have resulted in the spike in violence, aren’t legitimate reasons to begin killing innocent people. The regulations regarding visiting and praying on the Temple Mont for Muslims, Jews, and Christians has been an ongoing political problem. Nevertheless, Abbas has refused to condemn the attacks. In fact, he blames Israel for their steeping up security measures, saying the Jewish State is carrying out “field executions,” which he threatened to bring to the International Criminal Court. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the accusations lies.

Over at National Review, David French delved into the Temple Mount controversy that’s rumored to be the cause of what might be the third intifada. He cites Ruth Margalit of the New Yorker, who reported that the attacks could be rooted in the ongoing political problem, regarding the holy sites, which allows Jewish visitors on the Temple Mount during certain hours, but prohibits non-Muslim Prayer. There are rumors that there are plans to change these rules, but that’s been denied. Moreover, French added:

Palestinians are furious, with “moderate” Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas declaring, “The Al-Aqsa [Mosque] is ours, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre is ours, and they [Jews] have no right to defile it with their filthy feet.” He went on to encourage martyrdom, saying, “We bless every drop of blood that has been spilled for Jerusalem, which is clean and pure blood, blood spilled for Allah, Allah willing. Every martyr will reach Paradise, and everyone wounded will be rewarded by Allah.” In other words, when there is a shared holy site, Palestinians demand exclusively Muslim faith practice. And if they don’t get it, they’ll kill innocent men, women, and children until you relent. Let’s be clear — this is crazed, anti-Semitic religious intolerance, and Israelis are expected to “respect” this intolerance at the risk of being stabbed to death on a bus.

Good point.

Israel has deployed soldiers to help quell the violence:

Hundreds of soldiers fanned out in cities across Israel on Wednesday and authorities erected concrete barriers outside some Arab neighborhoods of east Jerusalem in a stepped up effort to counter a monthlong wave of Palestinian violence that has seen near daily attacks. Despite the escalated security, two assaults were reported Wednesday — the stabbing of a 70-year-old Israeli woman outside a crowded Jerusalem bus station and the attempted knifing of police officers outside the Old City. The enhanced measures came as Israel struggles to contain the spiraling violence and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces heavy pressure from hard-liners in his governing coalition to stamp out the attacks. The Palestinians called the new measures “collective punishment” that would only further enflame tensions. The military’s deployment of six companies to back up thousands of police marks the first implementation of steps approved by Israel’s security Cabinet early Wednesday, which also include stripping attackers of their Jerusalem residency rights and demolishing assailants’ homes. The Cabinet also authorized police to impose closures on centers of friction and incitement in Jerusalem. Israel has been unable to stop the attacks, carried out mostly by young Palestinians apparently acting spontaneously with no affiliation to or backing from organized militant groups.

Yet, it’s safe to assume that this situation won’t be deescalating anytime soon.