The terror attack Wednesday morning in Eli, in which local resident Roee Harel was injured and the two terrorists killed, highlights the shift in recent weeks in the modus operandi of Palestinian attackers, away from the hitherto lone-wolf style of the current wave of violence.

The attackers are now setting out in pairs, sometimes even in threes, to kill Israelis. Palestinian youths who decide to carry out an attack seem to understand that doing so with a partner or two at their side offers the possibility of causing far greater harm.

Acting in a “cell” or group can also help keep morale high, particularly when the members are friends who support and encourage each other, helping to sustain the motivation to attack until the moment of action.

The Eli attack was carried out by two 17-year-old Palestinians from the village of Qaryut, Labib Azzam and Mohammed Zaghlwan. They went to high school together, and according to family members in the village, attended evening prayers at the village mosque together the night before the attack, prior to disappearing from the village.

It’s reasonable to assume that the two planned the attack ahead of time and did not decide impulsively to carry it out early Wednesday morning. It’s also safe to assume that the simple fact that they acted together helped them pass the long hours of the night in anticipation of the attack.

Read the article in full at Times of Israel.