The Israeli government is walking a fine line between trying to protect their citizens and send a firm message to Palestinians, while also avoiding escalating the already taut tension between the two states.
Israel responded quickly and firmly to the Tel Aviv terrorist attack that killed four Israeli citizens on Wednesday. Israeli officials immediately froze 83,000 travel permits which allowed Palestinian residents to travel from the West Bank to Gaza in order to work or visit family members. Another 204 entrance permits which belonged to the families of the terrorists were also frozen.
The more lenient measures which Israel extended to Palestinians to make it easier for them to observe Ramadan, particularly when accessing the Temple Mount for prayers, have been revoked.
Israel also stationed more troops in the West Bank for security reasons.
In a more controversial move, Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman ordered, once again, for the immediate end to Israel's policy of returning the bodies of fallen Palestinian terrorists to their families. Although Liberman has called for this extreme measure multiple times, it seems like it is gaining some weight. The Israeli prime minister asked the National Security Council to form a committee that would look into the possibility of opening up a graveyard to bury the enemies of Israel, a common practice until about a decade ago.
The idea has been gaining popularity after the body of Alaa Abu Jamal, a Palestinian terrorist who killed a rabbi last October, was returned to his family for burial. His funeral became a national sensation as hundreds came to mourn his death and celebrate his "sacrifice."
His body had been released back to the family under the condition that the funeral would be a small private affair.