Roundup: Israeli forces seize Palestinian weapons-making machinery following deadly Tel Aviv attack

Israeli security forces seized weapons-making machinery in the West Bank on a raid Thursday night, as tensions mount following Wednesday's deadly attack in Tel Aviv, the Israeli army said Friday.

Israeli security forces carried out the raid in Abu Dis, a Palestinian village east of Jerusalem, where machinery to make weapons was confiscated in the past, according to a statement by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesperson.

Security forces also recovered ammunition and parts they say are used for explosives.

The raid is part of a series of operations by Israeli security forces following a deadly shooting attack at the popular Tel Aviv Sarona outdoor food market, in which two Palestinian gunmen from the West Bank village of Yatta, south of Hebron, killed four Israelis, leaving five others injured in moderate to serious condition.

The two attackers, cousins in their early 20's, used self-made guns known by the name of Carl Gustav. One of them is in police custody and another is hospitalized in serious condition after he was gunned down by a security guard.

This attack comes also after several months of a noted decrease in attacks and without any Israelis killed. It therefore might mark further deterioration in the situation, as Israeli leaders vow a stern response to the attack, at a time when Muslims are celebrating the one-month-long Ramadan holiday, adding to the already mounting tensions.

The Israeli army has imposed a siege on the village of Yatta, the attackers' home, late Wednesday, carrying out arrests and mapping out the homes of the two attackers. It is the first step in the procedure of home demolition, used by Israeli authorities to deter Palestinians from carrying out future attacks.

On Thursday, the military announced that following the defense establishment's directive, it would boost its Judea and Samaria (the Jewish biblical name for the West Bank) with two more battalions.

The decision to boost the military deployment was made along a slew of other measures, after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened security chiefs on Wednesday night, and later met with members of his security cabinet, a forum of ten ministers.

The army is set to increase its raids and carry out more arrests in the West Bank in the upcoming days, the Hebrew-based Walla! news website reported.

Other measures enacted by Israeli authorities following Wednesday's attack were revoking work permits in Israel for 204 members of the attackers' extended family, and retracting more than 83,000 permits allowing Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza Strip to enter Israel to meet with families and pray at the east Jerusalem al-Aqsa mosque, due to the their religious holiday.

The permits were announced a week earlier as a facilitating measure for the Palestinian community.

Furthermore, the Israeli army told Xinhua on Friday it would be imposing a closure on the West Bank and Gaza Strip territories starting from Friday until Sunday at midnight.

While the closure was announced along with other security measures, it is also common for Israel to impose closures on the Palestinian community during Jewish religious holidays. Jews celebrate the Shavuot holiday on Saturday and Sunday.

Israeli police has also been on high alert since Wednesday, with boosted presence at crowded spots in both Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, along with other sites of friction.

Thousands of Israeli policemen and border guards were on high alert Friday as the first Friday prayers of the Ramadan holiday took place in the firebrand site of Temple Mount in east Jerusalem, home to the al-Aqsa mosque. No unusual incidents had taken place throughout the noon prayers, police spokeswoman Luba Samri said in a statement.

In response to this series of measures, the U.S. administration urged Israel to refrain from punishing the entire Palestinian population for the deadly attack.

"We understand the Israeli government's desire to protect its citizens, and we strongly support it, but we hope that any measures it takes are designed to also take into consideration the impact on Palestinian citizens that are trying to go about their daily lives," State Department spokesperson Mark Toner said at White House briefing.

The possible escalation between Israelis and Palestinians occurs shortly after the recently-appointed defense minister, Avigdor Lieberman, assumed his position. He is known for his hawkish views and combatant statements.

As parliament member, he said if in charge he would "conquer" the Gaza Strip, and in another statement said that as Defense Minister he will give Ismail Haniyeh, leader of the Palestinian Hamas militant organization, "48 hours to live" before assassinating him.

While Lieberman said on Thursday after the attack that "words are not enough" and he would not settle for less than actions, pundits believe that as minister, he will act more responsibly.

"The substantial reduction in terror attacks in recent months has been achieved amid determination and sober judgement by Israel and steadily improving security coordination with the Palestinian Authority," Amos Harel, defense commentator for the Ha'aretz daily, wrote on Thursday.

"New Defense Minister Lieberman will quickly find that the measures at his disposal under the current diplomatic conditions are limited, as Israel hopes to avoid a total rift with the Palestinian Authority. He is now in an entirely new situation," Harel added.

While it remains to be seen what would be the impact of this attack and the following Israeli measures on the situation between Israelis and Palestinians, some Israelis, including the father of one of the victims, think Israel needs a strategic and diplomatic solution to end the violence, rather than military tactical moves.

"Last night, after the attack, the prime minister and his two ministers arrived and yet another security cabinet issued decrees -- not to return corpses, to put up barriers, to destroy houses and make lives harder. These solutions create suffering, hatred, despair," Avraham Ben Ari, father of Ido Ben Ari who was killed in Sarona shooting attack, said at his eulogy.

"What's needed is a solution rather than saying there's no one to make pace with. We chose you to end the cycle of blood, already 49 years you've been trying to solve things tactically and you haven't succeeded. The time has come for a strategic solution," he said. Endit