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Expert: Palestinian Terror Is Directed from Above

(Times of Israel) Simona Weinglass - Young Palestinians, many of them teenagers, are setting out to stab random Israelis, frequently losing their lives in the process. What are they hoping to achieve? MK Anat Berko (Likud) spent two decades as a criminologist specializing in suicide terrorists. So great were her listening skills that prisoners would talk to her for hours, hug her, cry and even give her their babies to hold. Berko says the attackers are committing these acts for the sake of "glory" on social media and in Palestinian society, and they compete over who can be the biggest hero. The terrorists do not think death is the end, but fully believe they will enter paradise. Berko says many young Palestinians live in communities with a tremendous amount of social pressure, prohibitions and shame. In paradise, they can experience all the things that are forbidden in real life. Berko says there is a normalization of violence in Palestinian society, with children's television praising martyrs while al-Qaeda and Islamic State have upped the ante for brutality among would-be terrorists. "I don't accept the idea that these are lone wolves. This wave of terror is directed from above. The incitement is insane. It's on TV, satellite broadcasts, in mosques, on the street and in schools, including east Jerusalem....It's so bad that it's a surprise that not everyone is a terrorist."
2015-12-08 00:00:00
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