Fear of terrorist attacks keeps Israelis at home

By ABRAHAM RABINOVICH in Jerusalem

Looking like a bouncer at an illegal speakeasy during America's prohibition era, the guard surveys a would-be client at the outer door before pressing a buzzer to let him in.

The place is an ordinary coffee house in Jerusalem's Ein Karem quarter peddling nothing more exotic than latte. But the efficient security arrangements have made it more popular than most since Palestinian suicide bombings made cafe going a hazardous enterprise.

Handwritten signs posted at the entrances to many eating places notify patrons of a surcharge, usually equivalent to US50c ($1.07), to cover the expense of a security guard. It is a charge people are happy to pay.

A security guard has become an almost omnipresent figure outside all premises, including post offices and banks, that draw crowds.

At concerts in Jerusalem's Binynai Haooma hall, people arriving are sometimes stopped at an outer barrier and asked to show their identity cards before proceeding towards the hall itself where they will be checked by guards with metal detectors.

Entrance to thronged open-air marketplaces is now through narrow choke-points manned by police, as are approaches to bus and train stations.

How long can people live like this? Very long, says Dr Reuven Gal, a former chief psychologist of the Israeli Defence Forces who has served as a consultant for Unicef in Bosnia and Kosovo.

"I was in Sarajevo in the midst of the fighting and saw a population that had lived for 10 years in a far more acute situation: 300,000 persons killed, thousands of women raped, homes destroyed," he said. "In the long perspective, people come out of it."

Human adaptability keeps the suicide bombings from totally paralysing people's lives, even if these are lived now more at home than ever before.

Cinema intakes have dropped but video rentals are booming and book stores report increased sales.

Sweets manufacturers report a 5 per cent increase in sales in the past year and beer companies a 10 per cent increase. The sale of home coffee-making Machines is booming.

A Tel Aviv restaurant, emptied by the recent events, now offers home delivery with the slogan "Now you can enjoy yourself safely at home". For a minimum of 10 people, the restaurant will even send the chef.

Feature: Middle East

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