Four Israeli civilians were murdered today when a terrorist opened fire in the Israeli city of Shfaram today. (See stories in Ha'aretz, the Jerusalem Post, and the New York Times.)

I haven't been able to find much information about the victims in the English-language press, other than their names and ages, and that they were Arab. Two of the victims were men in their mid-fifties (of whom one was the Egged driver), and two were women in their early twenties. Five others were wounded.

There is considerably more information about the terrorist, who was killed shortly thereafter. Eden Natan-Zada was nineteen years old and absent without leave from the Israeli Defence Forces, apparently protesting the disengagement policy. An article in Ha'aretz explains that he fit the profile of a Jewish extremist:

Newly religious, Natan-Zada was close to Kach activists and as a soldier, he had his own rifle. He even had ties with the Revava movement, which wanted to bring 10,000 Jews to Temple Mount for a protest rally a few months ago.

Natan-Zada discovered Kahane's heritage in the settlement of Tapuah. He first met his friends there through the Internet where he was reading essays about revenge and zealotry in Judaism published by the The Way of the Torah.

Kfar Tapuach, where Natan-Zada appears to have been residing, is the primary base of Kahane Chai, a Kahanist party led by Rabbi Binyamin Kahane until his death in December of 2000. Kahane Chai was declared to be a terrorist organization in 1994 by the Israeli Cabinet under its 1948 Terrorism Law. Kahane Chai has also been designated a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the U.S. Department of State.

The Way of the Torah, otherwise known as Darka Shel Torah, is a newsletter founded by Rabbi Binyamin Kahane and currently edited by Lenny Goldberg. The Office of Foreign Asset Control at the U.S. Department of the Treasury lists The Way of the Torah as an alias for Kahane Chai. Financial transactions with Kahane Chai, including fundraising, are prohibited under Federal law.

The Revava movement, to which Eden Natan-Zada allegedly had ties, is an offshoot, if not a direct part, of Kahane Chai. Revava was founded by David Ha'Ivri, the founder of HaMeir L'David, an organization devoted to spreading the ideas of Rabbis Meir and Binyamin Kahane, and the current publisher of The Way of the Torah and various Kahane authored books.

Interestingly, Revava has online discussion boards, in English and in Hebrew, to facilitate communication amongst its activists. Here are a couple of postings from the last twenty four hours:

This is an excerpt from a posting, published yesterday late evening (Israel time), entitled "First Martyr to stop disengagaemnet." This excerpt is followed by several news reports of the attack.

More and more people are starting to realize we are in war of survival and the Israeli Govt is surrendering like the Judenrats during the Holocaust thinking they will appease the appetities of those who want to destroy us, it failed then and it,s failing now ,now many more shall rise up to fight back while we can and also as things get worse .

This next posting, published three hours later, is entitled "Demonstrate at Temple Mount this friday." Note that the author of this posting is very clearly attempting to use the murders in Shfaram to provoke a riot.

We have some momentum now if only a few dozen people try to get on the Temple Mount during the friday prayers the police will have their hands full their also containing the riots .

Although financial transactions with Kahane Chai are strictly prohibited under Federal law, Kahane Chai holds fundraisers in the United States. At one such fundraiser it was explained that Kahane activists were prepared to use violence to resist being removed by the Israel Defence Forces. Money was solicited "for the cause."

Kahane Chai leaders also operate freely in the United States. In November 2003, for example, Lenny Goldberg and David Ha'Ivri travelled around the United States and Canada on a speaking and fundraising tour. Flyers posted in Los Angeles announced that Lenny Goldberg would be speaking in several area synagogues, including one large congregation in Beverly Hills. Recently, Revava co-founder Yisrael Meir Cohen has been on a speaking tour. This Sunday he is scheduled to speak in San Francisco and Oakland.

It is our responsibility to marginalize and isolate the extremists within our community. Through apathy and neglect, we have failed in this duty. In Los Angeles, a class on Kahanist thought is taught in a major synagogue. Kahane books are sold in a major Jewish bookstore.

Time runs short. With every moment that this community fails to take a strong and united stand against Kahanism, more of our youth will fall prey to extremism, more funds will flow to Kahane Chai, and the attendant danger to the brave soldiers of the IDF will grow. We can fail no longer.