1/8/2016 ONe Week Later the Terrorist is Caught

  It took one very long and difficult week but seven days after the horrific act of terror in Tel Aviv, Nashat Milhem, the terrorist, was killed by an elite unit of the Israeli Police.  One week ago two people – Alon Bakal and Shimon Roimi, were murdered on a lazy Friday afternoon at a bar on Dizengoff Street in downtown Tel Aviv. Security forces found physical evidence of his Milhem’s presence near the town of Arara, near his home in the Galilee, three days ago. This morning one of those helping the terrorist made a mistake, and the police and the security establishment learned Milhem’s location. In the course of the day, the police closed in on the terrorist, who was hiding in an abandoned home. 
 
Three people were involved in hiding him and providing him food and support.  It took the security establishment time to find the house that he was in, but slowly the security personnel figured it out.  At some point in the afternoon he realized that the police were closing in on him and Milhem exited the house he was in and got into a quick firefight with the police that ended in his death.
 
Nati Shaker, one of the owners of the Tel Aviv bar Simta, said after the capture “ it was a very difficult week, his elimination gives us hope that the other side will realize that terror will to defeat us”.  David Bakal, the father of the Alon stated, “I had no question that by Shabbat (which starts Friday at nightfall) they will catch the terrorist”. That provided little comfort to the grieving father.
 
Hamas television began a special broadcast when the news broke and called Milhem a martyr and blessed his action.  In the past three months there have been 200 terrorists killed or captured during attacks. Milhem is the fourth Arab Israeli to take part in attacks during this latest wave of terror. This very morning the imam in the main mosque in Arara gave a speech attacking the terror attack.  It is clear that most residents of the town oppose the act. They were embarrassed that someone from their town did such a heinous act.
 
At the moment it is not clear if Milhem was part of an ISIS cell, or some other group.  What is clear is that he was not acting alone and was not as some had tried to depict him as a crazy lone wolf. In the coming hours and days the background of the attack will become clear.  In the meantime, the residents of Tel Aviv and all of Israel are breathing a sigh of relief.  For the first time in recent history a terrorist had gotten away, but in the end he was found and killed.