Palestinians hurl rocks near a security fence in Ramallah. Photo: wiki commons.

Israel had an uptick in terror attacks in the West Bank last year, according to data published by the Shin Bet, Israel’s internal security service. There were 578 attacks in 2012, compared to 320 in 2011. In Jerusalem there were 282 attacks, compared with 191 in 2011. The Shin Bet said that there has been a notable increase in attacks with Molotov cocktails.

There is reason for optimism, however. The data reveals that 10 Israelis were killed in terrorist attacks in 2012, a 55% drop compared to 2011. Six of them were civilians and the rest were members of the security forces.

The data further states that for the first time since 1973 no Israeli was killed by a terrorist attack in the West Bank or Jerusalem. Over 2012 the Shin Bet says it thwarted 100 “major” terrorist attacks.