violence

FORMER head of Israel’s central command, Major General Yehuda Fox, has slammed the government’s decision to expand settlements in the occupied West Bank, criticizing the rise in settler violence in the region.

Fox said Israeli settlers have been involved in nationalist crimes through violence in the occupied West Bank. “They sow chaos and fear among Palestinians who pose no threat,” Fox said Monday (July 8).

“This is not Judaism in my eyes. At least not the one I grew up with in my mother and father’s house. This is not the way of the Torah. They are adopting the ways of the enemy,” Fox said.

Israeli forces and settlers have stepped up attacks on Palestinian towns and villages in the occupied West Bank since Israel’s war on Gaza began in October.

Since October, at least 553 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces and settlers in the area, and 9,510 have been detained, according to Palestinian officials.

Fox’s comments come just days following the Israeli government approved the construction of 5,295 new housing units in illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank.

Read also: West Bank Sees Surge in Israeli Settlements Since Gaza War

Some 3 million Palestinians live in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, and more than 500,000 Israelis live in more than 100 settlements across the territory. Settlement expansion remains a major obstacle to plans outlined in the Oslo Accords that promised a gradual transfer of Israeli-held territory to the Palestinians.

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, himself a settler, has overseen a major increase in settlement expansion under Prime Minister Netanyahu.

Fox acknowledged that it was his business as the head of the command responsible for the occupied West Bank to act and address settler expansion and violence, but he regretted that his actions were not always successful.

Read also: Indonesia Condemns Israel for Expansion of Settlement in West Bank

“The ability of Central Command to fulfill its duties also depends on the existence of a functioning and strong Palestinian Authority, with effective security mechanisms that maintain law and order. Proactively undermining the security reality in this regard endangers the security of the State of Israel,” Fox added.

On Tuesday (9/7), Israel Army Radio reported that 340 settler attacks on Palestinians in the occupied West Bank had been recorded since the beginning of 2024.

The Israeli army said its actions were an attempt to stamp out the activities of Palestinian armed groups who frequently exchange fire with Israeli troops during their attacks.

Fox added that Central Command had succeeded in ensuring that violence in the occupied West Bank did not escalate and become a “main front” amid the ongoing war in Gaza. (Aljazeera/Z-3)