The murder of West Bank settler Friday night has sparked fears that intifada unrest in on the rise again.
In fact, the stabbing death of Avi Osher, a 39-year-old father of two children, has been attributed to recent speculation in the Israeli media that the level of intifada-related violence has declined of late.
Some sources said that such talk and the stalemated peace process convinced extremist elements they had to prove the Palestinian uprising is not on the wane.
Osher, who lived in Bekaot, in the Jordan Valley region of the west Bank, was killed while picking dates at nearby Moshav Masua. Arab villages in the vicinity were placed under curfew on the assumption the killers are among their residents.
A preliminary investigation indicated that Osher was attacked from behind by several assailants. He put up a struggle but was overcome. His body was hidden in the luggage compartment of his pickup truck, which was driven to a nearby vineyard and abandoned.
Osher and his wife, Eilat, were 12-year residents of Bekaot. She summoned the security forces when he failed to return home by late Friday night. Searchers found his truck early Saturday morning.
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