Jerusalem, 12 December 2001
Security Cabinet Decision
(Communicated by the Cabinet Secretariat)
1. The Government of Israel takes a grave view of the deadly
attacks this evening (December 12).
2. The Government of Israel views Arafat as directly responsible
for this series of attacks, and, in light of this, states that
Arafat is no longer relevant from Israel's point of view, and
there will be no more communication with him.
3. The Security Cabinet approves the military actions as
presented by the Defense Minister and the Chief of Staff at the
"kitchen cabinet" meeting this evening.
4. The IDF will deploy rapidly for action in the urban areas of
the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, in order to carry out arrests
and to confiscate weapons.
5. The defense establishment will present to the Cabinet as soon
as possible the revised methods for combatting the Hamas, Islamic
Jihad and other terrorist organizations, in light of the
increased severity of terrorist attacks.
6. The Government of Israel views the Palestinian Authority and
its head as directly responsible for the difficult situation of
the Palestinian population. The Government of Israel will
continue to make every effort to assist this population.