GAZA: Right-leaning Jewish residents residing in unauthorized settlements scattered across the occupied West Bank have begun donning military attire and wielding high-caliber rifles as they intimidate Palestinian villagers.
This surge in settler aggression aims to expand their control over Palestinian territories, blurring the distinction between extremist factions and the Israeli military, which faces manpower shortages due to deployments for the Gaza conflict, activists claim.
In October, Israel’s conservative Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir disclosed the procurement of 10,000 military rifles to equip settler militias in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, purportedly for settlement defense.
Subsequently, settler violence has resulted in the deaths of at least nine Palestinians and the destruction of nearly a hundred homes in Palestinian communities.
“Previously, most settler incursions occurred under cover of darkness. They would conceal their identities while vandalizing our properties, fleeing upon police arrival,” recounts Murad Abdel Moneim Ismail Samara, a Bruqin resident near Nablus.
Now, settlers act with impunity, emboldened by the perceived protection from Israeli security forces, Samara observes. “They operate openly, knowing they won’t face consequences.”
Over 700 settler assaults, half of them in the presence of Israeli soldiers, were documented between October 7 and April 3, according to recent United Nations reports.
These attacks resulted in the displacement of approximately 1,222 Palestinians and claimed nine lives. Elsewhere in the occupied West Bank, Israeli security forces have reportedly killed 428 Palestinians.
The Israeli government has long permitted Jewish settlers in illegal outposts to carry firearms, which they deploy to intimidate or assault Palestinians. Additionally, each settlement typically assigns two or three residents to security duties.
However, in recent weeks, the number of such security personnel has surged, now outfitted in military garb and armed with M16 rifles, Samara notes. “They’ve adopted a quasi-military posture, blurring the lines between settlers and the armed forces.”
I am an experienced writer, analyst, and author. My exposure in English journalism spans more than 28 years. In the past, I have been working with daily The Muslim (Lahore Bureau), daily Business Recorder (Lahore/Islamabad Bureaus), Daily Times, Islamabad, daily The Nation (Lahore and Karachi). With daily The Nation, I have served as Resident Editor, Karachi. Since 2009, I have been working as a Freelance Writer/Editor for American organizations.
