The Shin Bet security services were mistaken, perhaps misled, certainly misleading. It had information about a target dangerous enough to justify the demolition of a house in Jenin's Al-Hadaf neighborhood on top of him. Someone who would justify a military raid lasting over eight hours.

But the house was demolished and no target emerged from it or was buried underneath. Nor did anyone fire at the troops from inside. The wounded Israeli soldier was a victim of friendly fire. And the owner of the house, Majdi Abu al-Hija, was arrested and released two days later. Record speed for a system that specializes in extorting another name and more details to be used in the future, another fearful-angry look and more humiliating stances.

The Shin Bet, the Yamam police counter-terrorism unit and the Israel Defense Forces did not let the facts confuse them. They came last Monday to the home of the Abu al-Hijas with heavy demolition equipment - Lau missiles and bulldozers. The mistress of the house, Aalia Abu al-Hija, 34, offered to enter the house with them as a human shield so they would see that nobody was hiding there. The Shin Bet officer, apparently Aharon, only laughed, and told her repeatedly that she was a liar and that there was a terrorist in the house.

In a vain attempt to learn about this terrorist, "Aharon" held her minor son (he is tall for his age, but his childish face reflects his age) for several hours in a separate room, his hands bound and raised behind his back, his back bent over. Who knows how this child will deal in the future with the painful, arrogant violence he experienced.

The troops organized on the roof of the neighbors half-built house, so they could shell from a distance of 30 to 40 meters the home of Majdi, Aalia and their five children, the eldest not yet 14, the youngest 16 months old. The family says they were held on the floor below the roof. Were Hamas to shell from a house with women and small children (or next to such a house), Israel would say it was cynically exploiting a civilian population. Six missiles were fired, said Aalia. After all, if theres a missile in the first act, it must be fired at the end of the play. And who knows, maybe there were some young men in the Yamam force who needed to practice the procedure, and this was the opportunity.

But this is not a play, and the house, a nine-year investment of love and money and hope, is not scenery. Its rubble is there, on a hill about a kilometer from the Jenin refugee camp. Most of the residents of the neighborhood are former residents of the refugee camp, who worked and saved and made an effort to change their lives. And yes, from there, too, they remember and remind others that they are originally from villages a few dozen kilometers to the west. The Abu al-Hijas are from the village of Ein Houd. Who knows, maybe the stone house of Majdi's family is still standing in the present Ein Hod, a destination for tourists who are enthusiastic about the beauty of the architecture and Israeli art.

The Shin Bet spokesmans office told Haaretz that the familys account does not reflect to put it mildly, the development of events on the ground, and that the security service does not provide details of its operations. As proof of its credibility, the Shin Bet mentioned that one of the soldiers involved was shot and wounded, and that pipe bombs and incendiary devices were thrown at the troops.

But these were thrown near the refugee camp, and Majdis swift release is not an invention, to put it mildly. The wounding of the soldier by friendly fire prolonged the hours of media interest in the raid. The additional Palestinian home that we demolished doesnt interest us.

What was presented as legitimate security activity to prevent terror sowed more despair and anger, and possible thoughts of revenge as well. And who knows, maybe the obvious screw-up there planted a doubt in the mind of some Shin Bet member, a doubt that 20 years from now will sprout into a brilliant, filmed analysis by a former senior Shin Bet officer about what we did wrong and how the occupation is a disaster.