The policy of targeted killing has traditionally been the main counteraction

from Israel in response to the growing amount of terror activity in Palestine.

Targeted killing is defined as the “intentional slaying of a specific individual
or group taken with government approval.” (1) Some would argue that
targeted killings are the same as State Sponsored Assassinations however
the Israeli government has refused to refer to their attacks as assassinations
due to the fact that assassinations usually concern the elimination of senior
political officials. The majority if Israeli attacks are targeted on people who
merely plan the attacks – and these individuals are generally not senior
officials in Palestine. Most of the attacks conducted by Israel are generally
assumptions because the Israeli government usually do not officially
acknowledge their roles in the attacks unless it is obvious that there are
Israeli forces involved. Attacks by Mossad are known for their sophistication
in choice of weapons, their efficiency, professionalism and their efforts to
minimise innocent casualties.

Targeted killings conducted by Israel have gained more public recognition in

recent years after growing waves of terror activity have been brought to light
in the media. However Israel has had a long history regarding targeted
killings dating back to Biblical times. There are many examples of murders
undertaken by important figures in the bible – for example King David had
the head of his army killed because he feared of action being taken against
him. There are also accounts of murders before Israeli independence of
individuals who supported the British occupation of Palestine in 1917–1918.
Israeli’s independence in 1948 sparked fury among Arab nations who
opposed the recognition of the state which led to larger waves of terror
activity which consequently provoked more attacks from Israel. In the 1950s,
Israel focused its efforts on halting fedayeen (freedom fighters) from Egypt.
Mail bombs sent from the Mossad killed two senior military officers. This
method was used again in the 1960s to scare German scientists who were
planning missiles capable of reaching Israel from Egypt. This plan was
successful and the German scientists then moved back to Germany with
their families and the missile program was put to an end. There was another
wave of terrorism in the later years of the 1960s after Israel’s victory in the
1967 war. This dramatically increased the number of attacks from Israel. The
killing of eleven Israeli athletes at the infamous Munich Olympics in 1972
resulted in the Mossad hunting down and killing all of the Black September
members responsible for the murders. Three major attacks conducted by the
Mossad during the 1990s achieved different results- one successful, one a
failure, and the last achieving mixed results. The successful attack killed a
Palestinian Jihad Head- Fathi Shikaki and produced disorganisation in the
Jihad which then led to the breaking apart of the Jihad. The mixed outcome
was brought about when the Mossad succeeded in killing a known bomb
maker – Yahya Ayyash in Gaza by using a booby trap implanted on his
mobile. However this provoked four suicide bus bombings within the next
two months killing more than 50 Israelis. And lastly, the failed attempt was
when the Mossad failed to kill Khaled Meshal, a Hamas political leader in
1997. The Mossad agents succeeded in poisoning Meshal but were caught
and arrested by Jordanian authorities before they could leave the country,
The Prime Minister of Israel, was then forced to promise to provide the
antidote to the poison and release the founder of Hamas from Israeli prison
for the return of the agents. This failed operation led to strained relations
with the friendly Arab country Jordan and infuriated Canada when it was
discovered that the agents were using false Canadian passports. The most
publicized recent suspected attacks from Mossad happened in the beginning
of this year, January 2010 when suspected Mossad agents were caught on
camera dressed in disguises at a hotel at the time Hamas leader Mahmoud
al-Mabhouh was killed in Dubai. It was then discovered that the agents used
false Australian, British, Irish, French and stolen German passports and this
attack then weakened Israel’s ties with the respective countries.

Targeted killing is effective as it is a counter offensive action against

terrorism (which is an offensive action). It is too difficult to defend or to deter
attacks in places where they might occur since there are literally tens of
thousands of areas where terrorists could hit. It would require too much
effort to defend all of these areas. Deterring terrorists is particularly difficult
when there are individuals ready to die for their cause. In this case, the best
approach is to eliminate the terrorists before they hit. As mentioned above
there have been many successes with this method. There are also many
benefits; one being that targeted killing has caused disarray in the hierarchy
within many terrorist organisations. There only a certain amount of people
available who carry the skill and expertise to plan and conduct these attacks.
When these people are eliminated the ability to mount terrorist attacks is
diminished.

Targeted killings also forces terrorists to keep on the run. The Israelis usually
inform the Palestinian Authority on who they are after and the information is
then generally passed onto the suspected terrorist. The focus of the targeted
individual is then to avoid the Mossad and more effort put into avoiding the
Mossad means less effort is taken into causing terror and destruction.
Targeted killing may also in some cases work as a deterrent because even
though there are some people out there willing to die for their cause, there
are also some people out there not ready for martyrdom.

There is also evidence that a targeted killing is so effective that it alters the
behaviour of some terrorists. When the Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon
met with three other Arab leaders, he asked them about their priorities and
what they wanted from Israel. The first thing they replied with was to put an
end to the targeted killings. Islamic Jihad and Hamas promised to stop
launching attacks in Israel (pre 1967) if Israel would stop killing their leaders.
Although this ceasefire didn’t last long, it goes to shows the deterrent power
of targeted killing.

Although there are a number of successes with targeted killing, there is also
a big price to pay for killing selected individuals. This policy has
understandably been met with condemnation from around the globe. Human
rights groups within and out of Israel such as Amnesty International, Human
rights Watch and B’tselem have all described the killings as “extrajudicial,
unlawful” and “an excessive, Disproportionate [and] negligent use of force.”
(2) The Secretary General of the United Nations (UN) Kofi Annan has urged
Israel to end the killings as he believes that it violates the international law
and disrupts any chances of peace in the Middle East. Former US Secretary
of State Colin Powell has also criticized the policy of targeted killings saying
that “We continue to express our distress and opposition to these kinds of
targeted killings and we will continue to do so.” (3) Although criticisms from
the US has reduced after the September 11 attacks, the European Union and
obviously the Arab States are outspoken in their condemnation about Israel’s
approach to combating terrorism. This was especially the case when
fourteen innocent Palestinians were killed in an operation in 2002 when the
Hamas leader Shehada was assassinated. Nine of the victims were children.

Targeted killing also disrupts diplomatic relations and any chances of

negotiations between Arab countries in Palestine for peace in the Middle
East. Peace negotiations in the Middle East can be intensified and disrupted
due to the attacks. For example in 1998, the Mossad succeeded in
assignation Yasser Arafat’s (the President of the Palestinian National
Authority) second in command Abu Jihad. They didn’t only eliminate a person
suspected of several attacks, but they also killed a person who many
believed were capable of making negotiations and peace compromises.
Israel’s refusal to drop the policy has also disrupted many attempts for
ceasefires.

Killing selected individuals may also encourage more attacks and more
potential terrorists. Each time a person is killed, a “martyr” is created.
Palestinian organizations have initiated propaganda, displaying pictures and
posters of the bombers, portraying them as heroes and romanticizing them.
At their funerals, it is common to see mourners who are willing to die in their
place and become suicide bombers. Among terrorist organizations it is seen
as an honour to be killed by the Israelis and the organization to which the
terrorist belongs gains popularity after their death. It is believed that more
media coverage of particular terrorist organisations such as Hamas and Jihad
has encouraged them to launch more attacks to increase their popularity.
Arafat’s organizations have also stepped up on the amount of their attacks to
compete with the success of Hamas and Jihad. An unofficial deadly
competition has developed to see which organization could launch the
deadliest attacks against Israel. Due to this reason, targeted killing has
encouraged what it was made to stop.

Lastly, one of the most obvious cons to targeted killings is that it increases
the amount of Israelis killed. It provokes more retaliation which leads to more
deaths than it saved lives. It is also believed that targeted killing promotes
destabilisation in many individuals thus provoking more aggression and
violence. As mentioned earlier, over fifty Israelis were killed by suicide
bombers after the slaying of Ayyash. Also in 2002 after the assassination of a
Tanzim leader, Raed al-Karmi, the ceasefire declared by Yasser Arafat the
previous month broke. During this ceasefire, terror activity had been at its
lowest ever since the second infintada in 2000. Karmi’s death unleashed a
massive wave of suicide bombers. What was worse was that his death led to
the formation of another organisation, the Al-Aksa Bridafe; whose aims are to
pay respect to Karmi and engage in suicide bombings.
Colonel Peter M. Cullen, The Role of Targeted Killing in the Campaign Against
Terror

Amnesty International, “Israel and the Occupied Territories: State

Assassinations and Other Killings,” Amnesty

Herb Keinon, Janine Zacharia, Lamia Lahoud, “UN, US: Stop Targeted
Killings” Jerusalem Post