Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned a wave of West Bank settler violence on Saturday after weeks of unrest, including a siege in the village of Qusra. The rare condemnation follows heavy international criticism and coincides with military operations to remove rioters and separate clashing groups.
Netanyahu Condemns Settlers Amid Mounting International Pressure
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu broke his silence on Saturday to condemn what he termed criminal acts by a handful of rioters
in the occupied West Bank. Netanyahu said the actions of the rioters caused a grave injustice to the law-abiding Jewish community, interfering with the IDF in carrying out its missions, and harming Israel's standing in the world.
His statement followed over two weeks of unrest in the town of Qusra, where settlers have surrounded several homes including one owned by a Palestinian American.
The pressure from Washington intensified after U.S. officials learned that the home of a Palestinian American was among those targeted. A U.S. official and an Israeli official stated that White House officials pressed Netanyahu to publicly condemn the settlers’ actions, speaking on condition of anonymity to describe sensitive discussions. A White House official stated to Reuters on Friday, A stable West Bank keeps Israel secure and is in line with this administration’s goal to achieve peace in the region.
U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee referred to the settlers as Israeli terrorists,
a word U.S. officials usually reserve for Palestinian militants.
President Isaac Herzog also condemned the attack in Qusra, while Israel’s foreign ministry called the violence “a disgrace,” stating that the actions of these violent extremists are a disgrace and stand in complete contradiction to the values of the State of Israel.
Condemning settlers could be politically risky for Netanyahu some two months before an election, potentially upsetting settler voters upon whom parts of his right-wing coalition rely. Netanyahu’s government, the most ultranationalist and religious in Israel’s history, has presided over a surge of settlement construction in the West Bank.
Village Siege and Clashes in Qusra and Jalud
Dozens of Israeli settlers attacked the Palestinian village of Qusra in the northern occupied West Bank on Saturday after nearly three weeks of tension in the area. Earlier in August a group of settlers began blocking supplies from entering Palestinian houses on the outskirts of the village near Nablus, trapping residents inside and drawing unusually strong criticism from the US ambassador. Settlers have been encircling homes in Qusra for almost a week after cutting off water and electricity, trapping Palestinians in an area where rights groups say settlers are mounting a concerted effort to seize more land, further eating into territory where Palestinians aim to establish a state.
On Saturday, Qusra residents and the military said dozens of settlers had descended on the village, throwing stones at residents and barricading themselves inside a house while Palestinians were inside. In nearby Jalud, NBC News said masked settlers attacked and injured members of its reporting team and a Palestinian woman it had gone to interview. In Qusra, resident Yussef Abdul Kareem Hassan told AFP that a handful of villagers were doing work on a house on Saturday when they were approached by a small group of settlers. The settlers then called for backup and returned with dozens more, Hassan said, adding that they surrounded the Palestinians inside the house and began throwing stones. Qusra Mayor Abdel Azim Wadi told AP that two inhaled tear gas and two others were hurt when settlers threw stones, and stated that the house targeted was no longer under siege. AFP footage of Qusra on Saturday showed dozens of Israeli forces deployed to the site.
Weeks later, Israeli forces continue to operate in the area while settlers still roam the surrounding hills. The Israeli military said soldiers and border police forces were dispatched following reports that Israeli rioters had arrived in the area and that violent clashes followed. They said dozens of rioters barricaded themselves in a Palestinian home while residents were inside, and that the groups were separated and rioters’ vehicles were confiscated. The statements did not mention any arrests. Israeli forces also prevented Israeli and foreign activists from reaching Palestinian families whose homes have been surrounded by settlers for nearly a week in the occupied West Bank town of Qusra, south of Nablus. The activists were trying to deliver food and water to three homes in the Ras al-Ain area on Friday, according to the Palestinian news agency Wafa. Al Jazeera’s Laith Jaar, reporting from Qusra, said that Israeli forces brought in reinforcements and stopped members of the Israeli group Peace Now from reaching the families after declaring the area a closed military zone. Mayor Abdel Azim Wadi told Wafa that Israeli forces had also forced Italian activists who managed to reach the homes earlier in the week to leave.
