This week is expected to see the first step towards removing the government of failure and malice from power. On Tuesday, the Knesset is due to elect a new Speaker, replacing the incumbent with a candidate supported by 67 opposition MKs. This is conditional, of course, on there being no Capitol-style incident to prevent the Knesset from convening. (In Washington, the Vice President refused Trump's demands that he prevent the certification of the election results, thereby allowing Congress to meet). By contrast, forming a government in Jerusalem based on that same opposition majority is currently impossible, thanks to Avigdor Lieberman, who fails to understand that every day the Netanyahu-Smotrich government remains in office brings another injustice into being.
On Wednesday, settler families moved into eight buildings on the outskirts of Jericho, in the Ein Dyouk al-Tahta neighbourhood, in Area C, adjacent to the border with Area A. The operation was backed by the Nachala movement and the Binyamin Regional Council. The takeover of the Palestinian residential compound had begun on the eve of Election Day, when settlers broke into the homes, stole equipment, assaulted residents and erected a gate blocking access to dozens of Palestinian homes. This week, the takeover was completed. Around 30 settlers, some of them armed, accompanied by soldiers from the territorial defence units and the security coordinator of the settlement of Mevo'ot Yericho, violently seized several homes. Residents who were still in the compound were forced to leave, and settler families moved in. The archaeological site known as the Hasmonean Palaces is located about 500 metres away. The Netanyahu government recently decided to invest NIS 20 million in the site. In late 2024, an illegal outpost was established adjacent to it.
Haaretz reported that the commander of the IDF Central Command, Major General Avi Bluth, had advance knowledge of the intention of settlers and members of the Nachala movement to move into the homes on the outskirts of Jericho. According to the report, Bluth asked that the information not be passed on to the commanders in the sector until the settlers had taken up residence. The report also stated that Bluth denied the allegations. The IDF Spokesperson's Unit announced that “the entry into the homes took place without prior coordination with the IDF and without authorization.”
There are good reasons to question the credibility of the military spokesperson's denial, given that this is not the first time, either generally or during the past week, that the spokesperson has failed to tell the truth. Former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert wanted to take part in the olive harvest in the West Bank. The harvest was scheduled for Wednesday and had been coordinated in advance, including a preliminary security inspection by Shin Bet personnel. But on Tuesday night, Central Command announced that the area had been declared a “closed military zone” and that the harvest could not take place. The IDF Spokesperson's Unit stated that “following the denial of security arrangements and the refusal to authorize entry into a closed military zone, the organizers decided to cancel the visit.” In reality, contrary to the spokesperson's statement, it was not the organizers who made the decision. The truth is that the decision was made by the commander of Central Command.
In an interview with Kan radio, Olmert accused Major General Avi Bluth of assisting Jewish rioters in Judea and Samaria, “using unacceptable means that contradict his responsibility as Israel's sovereign authority in the territories.” According to Olmert, Bluth declared a closed military zone “in an area where there was no reason to do so,” under pressure from leaders of the settler community in Judea and Samaria. “They put pressure on him, threaten violent action, and he gives in to those threats, in direct contradiction to his obligation to uphold law and order and protect all residents – Jews and Palestinians alike.”
What is happening in the West Bank adds to the long list of reasons why the Netanyahu government must be replaced immediately. The most important and fundamental reason is his takeover of the Shin Bet and the police, which are assisting him in an attempt to undermine the election results and create circumstances that would force another election campaign. Anyone who believes in democracy knows that fair elections are impossible as long as the security services and police serve the ruler rather than the state. The members of the change bloc must therefore understand the urgent necessity of forming a government, even if it relies on the support of two parties representing more than 20% of the country's citizens.
Such a government could mark the beginning of a historic process that would change Israel's future. Its success would demonstrate that Arab citizens of Israel are legitimate partners and, at the same time, can serve as a bridge to peace. But for this to happen, Eisenkot, Bennett and Lieberman must lead the change rather than bow their heads to the prevailing winds of intolerance blowing through the streets and even through mainstream media outlets.
Sunday – Fourteen foreign nationals were arrested by the army over the weekend in the area of Luban al-Sharqiya in the West Bank. The detainees, human rights activists, were suspected of involvement in a “friction incident,” disturbing the peace, entering a closed military zone and violating a lawful order. Following a hearing before the Population and Immigration Authority, they are expected to be deported immediately.
Right-wing thugs arrived in the evening at Kibbutz Glil Yam, where Sigal Shukron, an activist with Looking the Occupation in the Eye, lives, and shouted abusive slogans at her. Earlier, some of them had been among a group of hecklers who gathered near Gadi Eisenkot's home in Herzliya.
Khirbet a-Tawil: Settlers from the Jackson outpost invaded the residential area of a local family, claiming they were searching for livestock belonging to them that had allegedly been stolen. This is a recurring pretext used to justify intimidation and harassment. Activists from Looking the Occupation in the Eye placed themselves between the settlers and the family's home and sheep pens. One activist was pushed, injured his leg and required stitches and immobilization. An army unit arrived some time later. The allegedly stolen livestock was documented roaming around the outpost. Harassment of local residents by people from the outpost continued throughout the rest of the week.
Monday – The IDF arrested 18 settlers during the evacuation of the illegal outpost “Ora Israel,” near Salfit and Ariel. Around 150 settlers and right-wing activists gathered at the site and threw stones at soldiers and police officers. The settlers set tyres on fire and erected roadblocks on major roads to prevent the army from demolishing illegal structures in an area declared a closed military zone. One of the vehicles seized by the army contained flammable materials, assault equipment and pepper spray.
The military operation in Hebron, launched following the killing of two soldiers by Palestinian attackers from the city, came to an end. Thousands of residents who had been forced to leave their homes will return to a neighbourhood in which many houses have been damaged. Other residents discovered that property had been looted from their homes and businesses. The army reported dozens of arrests and the seizure of four firearms.
Settlers established an outpost in Palestinian homes near the Hasmonean Palaces on the outskirts of Jericho, in Area C. They attacked a Palestinian family in their home, entered the courtyard and threatened to murder the family members. They fired at the wall of the house and smashed the front door.
Settlers set fire to residential buildings in Wadi al-Rahim, in the southern Hebron Hills. The intruders sprayed graffiti containing abusive slogans. Vehicles were set alight in Majdal Bani Fadil, in the Nablus area. Soldiers vandalized a monument in Nablus.
Tuesday – “The IDF has recently identified a high level of motivation among Jewish terror activists in the West Bank to use violence against security forces and create facts on the ground, amid concerns over the evacuation of illegal outposts,” Yaniv Kubovich reported in Haaretz. According to the report, “military sources warn that resistance directed at them during enforcement operations has intensified, including roadblocks, burning tyres, stone-throwing and attacks on soldiers and police officers.”
The Palestinian newspaper Al-Quds published a report on assistance provided by former senior IDF officers, led by Major General (res.) Eyal Ben-Reuven, to the olive harvest in the village of Qusra. Without their assistance, the report stated, the Palestinian farmers would not have been able to harvest their olives. Colonel (res.) Doron Meinraht, one of the leaders of Looking the Occupation in the Eye, was quoted as saying that the occupation is the central problem facing Israeli society and that it is impossible to continue ignoring it. He stressed the need to confront the issue directly and seek just solutions in cooperation with the Palestinian side.
Wednesday – In a-Dyouk al-Tahta neighbourhood on the outskirts of Jericho, a group of around 30 or more settlers, accompanied by uniformed personnel, surrounded residents' homes, attacked and injured two Israeli human rights activists, and fired live ammunition that wounded a Palestinian in the leg. Members of the community were forced to abandon their homes. An army unit commanded by a battalion commander arrived nine hours after being called. During the night, uniformed personnel accompanied the heads of the families back to their homes to collect whatever belongings had not yet been looted by the settlers. The Nachala settlement movement announced that it had taken over eight homes in a suburb of Jericho, which it calls “the Hasmonean Palaces,” in Area C. According to Nachala, the homes had been purchased from their owners “right under the Palestinian Authority's nose.” The Binyamin Regional Council claimed that the settlers had entered the homes under security protection and “under a cloak of secrecy.”
Thursday – The members of the community expelled from Jericho settled near the homes that had been taken over. From time to time, a delegation, accompanied by soldiers, went back to collect more of the belongings left behind in the homes now occupied by settlers. Three volunteers from Kibbutz Na'aran assisted the displaced families, while human rights activists continued to accompany the community driven from its homes. The Nachala movement began offering tours of the “new settlement.”
Army tractors uprooted olive trees in Beit Iksa, while bulldozers demolished several homes in the village of Biddu, near Har Adar, close to the Green Line.
Khasham al-Daraj, on the outskirts of Masafer Yatta: Armed, masked uniformed personnel broke into a wedding hall in the middle of a wedding celebration and arrested six people, including a woman and a minor. They entered the women's section and confiscated all the mobile phones to prevent any documentation of their actions. In addition, the intruders confiscated a private car and a tractor, opened the valve of a water tank and then left.
Jewish rioters raided the town of Beit Ummar, north of Hebron, during the night, setting cars on fire and damaging property. Army Radio quoted security sources as saying: “There was also an attempt to set residential homes on fire.”
Friday – Haaretz: The commander of Central Command, Major General Avi Bluth, had advance knowledge of the intention of settlers and members of the Nachala movement to enter homes on the outskirts of Jericho, where Palestinian families had been living until they were expelled by settlers on Wednesday. According to the report, Bluth asked that the sector commanders not be informed until the settlers had moved in. The report stated that Bluth denied the allegations. The IDF Spokesperson's Unit announced that “the entry into the homes took place without prior coordination with the IDF and without authorization.” Minister of Settlement and National Missions Orit Strock visited the homes occupied by the settler families and met with them. Three platoons of soldiers were assigned to guard the intruders.
Saturday – Settlers attacked Palestinians in Masafer Yatta during the night and beat them until they lost consciousness. Soldiers were present at the scene. None of the attackers was arrested.
Soldiers accompanied settlers who emptied the contents of a rubbish trailer attached to a Palestinian tractor at the entrance to a school in al-Mughayyir, in the Ramallah area. The settlers subsequently took the tractor.
