- Israeli settlers attack Palestinian villages despite international sanctions
- U.S. penalties fail to deter Israeli settler violence
- Settlers hide identities to evade accountability for attacks
On October 13, dozens of Israeli settlers invaded the village of Tajamaa al-Murajaat in the occupied West Bank, much to the terror of Haitham Kaabna and his family.
As they assaulted farmers, the settlers, he claims, were protected by the army and carried M16 assault rifles.
Settlers pillaged olive groves, vandalized automobiles, and abducted livestock for two weeks. A forced evacuation of approximately 200 Palestinian households from Tajamaa al-Murajaat, located in the Jordan Valley, resulted from the violence.
Kaabna remained until October 26, when colonizers broke into his home and compelled him and his family to flee to safety.
“At least forty settlers broke into our home and started assaulting women and children.” “My brother and my son, who is only about two years old, were also struck,” Kaabna told.
Twenty Palestinian communities in the West Bank have been assaulted and expelled by Israeli settlers since October 7, according to Human Rights Watch.
The clandestine nature of the forced expulsions can be attributed to Israel’s conflict with Gaza, purportedly in retaliation for a surprise attack led by Hamas on southern Israel that has claimed the lives of over 34,000 Israelis and sparked allegations of genocide.
Despite the United States government’s efforts to sanction certain settlers and reduce military assistance to an Israeli army unit implicated in severe human rights violations, attacks have intensified in recent weeks.
Experts and activists told that neither action is sufficient to halt a state-backed effort to “ethnically cleanse” Palestinians of their villages.
“We are not simply discussing attacks by fanatical settlers,” said Jamal Juma, a Palestinian activist who monitors settler attacks in the occupied West Bank.
“We are discussing organised plans that the Israeli government has systematically and forcefully advanced on the ground.”
Authorising unauthorised settlements
Despite entering into the 1993 Oslo Accords, which instigated a peace process and prohibited Israel from expanding settlements in the occupied West Bank to establish a Palestinian state, Israel has continued to expand these unlawful areas.
In contrast, the United States essentially sanctioned the expansion of Israeli settlements when the administration of President Donald Trump recognized them as legitimate, thereby violating international law. Juma reports that the Israeli government and settlers were emboldened by Trump’s decision to increase the confiscation of Palestinian villages.
He told, “The settler-colonial project had always existed, but it required legitimization, and Trump legitimised Israel’s entire colonisation of historic Palestine.”
The United States reverted to its previous stance during the administration of President Joe Biden when it declared Israeli settlements illegitimate in February. However, this reversal occurred after Israel approved of 3,300 new homes in illegal settlements in the same month.
The United States is also anticipated to apply to the Netzah Yehuda, an Israeli army unit, the Leahy Law, which prohibits the provision of military aid by the United States to any foreign battalion implicated in human rights violations.
The unit, which is comprised of ultra-Orthodox Israeli males, has allegedly committed heinous crimes against Palestinians, according to human rights organizations and monitors.
Sarah Elaine Harrison, an expert with the International Crisis Group and a former official of the United States Department of Defence, stated that the Leahy Law is not equivalent to sanctions and that Israel can continue to purchase weapons for Netzah Yehuda.
She further stated that a monitoring mechanism is not operational to assess whether Netzah Yehuda can continue to obtain American weapons through the yearly military assistance provided by the United States to Israel.
“It’s complicated because Netzah Yehuda may still be carrying U.S. firearms, and we won’t know if they were purchased with Israeli funds or are part of the $3.3 billion in foreign military financing Israel receives annually from the United States,” she told.
Limited responsibility
Regaining US military assistance could be possible for Netzah Yehuda if Israel holds soldiers affiliated with the unit culpable for human rights violations.
Israeli officials, on the other hand, have defended Netzah Yehuda and condemned the United States action, casting doubt on the likelihood that Israel will soon begin disciplining its soldiers and commanders.
A minister in Israel’s war cabinet, Benny Gantz, stated on Twitter that the brigade was “an indispensable component” of the Israeli army and that the country’s “robust, autonomous judicial system” was adequate to handle purported violations.
In 2019-2020, however, perpetrators were prosecuted in only 2% of complaints lodged by Palestinians harmed by Israeli soldiers, according to the Israeli human rights organization Yesh Din.
Harrison told, “The pushback from Israel is that if you criticise one soldier, you undermine the entire apparatus and even the country itself.”
In addition, four settlers have been sanctioned by the United States for their involvement in bullying and assaulting Palestinian and Israeli activists. Although human rights organizations applauded the action, they have demanded that Israeli officials who authorize illegal settlements face further sanctions. The United States has currently ruled out that course of action.
At this time, there are no intentions to impose sanctions on Israeli government officials, according to national security spokesman for the White House John Kirby, who told reporters in February.
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A 26-year-old Palestinian activist named Karim Ali disclosed that two of the authorized settlers reside in the vicinity of Hebron, in his vicinity.
Ali reported that although armed settlers have ceased their assaults on Palestinians, they continue to cause damage to his village through activities such as punching holes in water reservoirs and stealing livestock fodder.
Ali explained that by sabotaging the livelihoods of the approximately one hundred Palestinian villagers, the settlers are pressuring them to abandon their property.
“This year, approximately ninety percent of our fields are near settler outposts-went without cultivation, making it difficult to provide sustenance for our sheep. This community comprises shepherds who are reliant on them for survival. “They lack any additional economic infrastructure”.
The cover-up
Human rights violations in the West Bank have not been mitigated by the Leahy Law or sanctions; however, Palestinians assert that settlers are concealing their identities to avoid potential repercussions for their actions.
Ali reported that his uncle was the target of an assault for capturing a photograph of a vehicle transporting armed settlers. His uncle was beaten, his wrists were zip-tied, and he was thrown into the back of the settlers’ truck. After escorting him to their settlement, they instructed him to erase the images from his mobile device.
Ali told, “The settler even struck the camera lens on [my uncle’s] phone with a knife and threatened that “this is what will happen to anyone who raises a phone in front of us again.”
“[The settler] declared, ‘I will allow you to return home this time.'” “However, not the following time.”
According to Kaabna, who currently resides with his family on an abandoned parcel of land, colonizers seized each individual’s phone during their raid on his residence.
“They object to our filming and photographing their violence.” “They do not want photographs taken”.
Ali and Kaabna emphasized that settlers will not be deterred from assaulting Palestinian villages by US sanctions unless pressure is also applied to end the Israeli occupation.
“Any actions implemented that indicate to colonizers that their illicit activities are being observed are beneficial […] “However, the sanctions are merely a bandage for the issue rather than confronting it directly,” Ali stated.
