Israel raises terrorism alert ahead of October 27 elections

In view of the October 27 elections in Israel, the level of alarm related to the terrorist threat has been raised based on precise intelligence information. On Sunday evening during the political-security cabinet, the head of the Shin Bet, David Zini, communicated a specific and worrying intelligence alert to the ministers.

According to information obtained by the internal intelligence service, "Hamas is intensifying efforts to organize a complex attack or a targeted kidnapping operation" close to the vote or immediately after. The objective is to "generate a strong media impact, disrupt the Israeli political and security agenda, influence the operational situation".

Five days after the near tragedy of the FlyDubai plane, the Omani co-pilot Hammam Al-Hammami, who wanted to crash into Tel Aviv, when questioned in the Emirates declared that he wanted to act "to avenge Gaza, I wanted to die as a martyr". The words of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu now resonate, having said just a day earlier: "We have signs that, in view of the vote, our enemies will try to attack us." In the same days it emerged that the IDF is on maximum alert in Gaza where, according to military services, Hamas is planning to kidnap an Israeli soldier for the third anniversary of 7 October.

However, the threat does not only come from the Strip, where in recent days several armed men have been filmed on video while they moved from below and among the rubble trying to get closer to the Security Line controlled by the IDF. The greatest concern of the Israeli security system concerns the West Bank. In past weeks, on the occasion of the Jewish holidays of Yom Kippur and Sukkot, the checkpoints at the entrances to the West Bank remained closed, except in exceptional cases. As always happens during the anniversary period but with greater restrictions. The situation in the West Bank has become increasingly heated due to daily attacks by extremist Israeli settlers against Palestinian residents. An issue also brought up on Sunday evening during the political security cabinet in a clash between the head of the Shin Bet and the far-right minister Orit Struk, from Bezalel Smotrich's party.

Struck attacked Zini by stating that he "presents the situation as if the Arabs were all sunshine and roses and only the settlers were the problem." The Shin Bet chief replied: "The Palestinians do not burn Jewish homes. You are out of line. We need condemnations and denunciations from the entire leadership. This harms settlements and security." The altercation effectively put on the table the 'detail' that was not directly leaked, namely that the explosive situation produced by the anarchist settlers could be the fuse that ignites the West Bank. Just as Hamas has hoped for three years now, calling the 'brothers' of the area to arms. It is no coincidence that in recent months the IDF's counter-terrorism operation has led to the plan to establish a permanent army post in Jenin, in the northern West Bank, where 33,000 people have been evacuated from refugee camps in 2025.

During the military actions, numerous Hamas affiliates were arrested and massive quantities of weapons were found. Some leaders of the local terrorist organization were killed by the IDF in targeted actions. If the army establishes a permanent post in Jenin, it would be the first time in the part of the West Bank designated as Area A, which under the Oslo Accords is under civilian and military control of the Palestinian Authority. The Israeli security apparatus is preparing to prevent any attempted terrorist attack and has strengthened its presence on all fronts. But the fears, thinking back to October 7, remain strong