Israel Encourages Settler Violence
Israel gives settlers a license to terrorize.
by Stephen Lendman
Settler violence is terrorism. Even America's State Department says so. Hypocrisy is saying one thing and doing another.
Israeli setter violence is out-of-control. It's risen sharply in recent years because nothing is done to stop it. Israeli extremists literally have license to attack Palestinian civilians, destroy their property and crops, inflict bodily harm, and at times kill.
Last March, the London Guardian headlined "Israel 'turning blind eye' to West Bank settlers' attacks on Palestinians," saying:
Settlers conduct "systematic and expanding campaign of violence against Palestinian farmers, families and children with the Israeli authorities turning a blind eye, according to confidential reports from senior European Union officials."
Two EU reports the Guardian obtained showed "settler violence (more) than tripled in three years to total hundreds of incidents."
In February, EU ambassadors in Brussels said:
"Acts of settler violence are becoming a serious concern for the Israeli state which has so far failed to effectively protect the Palestinian population."
The report said attacks rose from 132 in 2009 to 411 last year. Farmers are most vulnerable. In 2011, about 10,000 olive, almond, and lemon trees were destroyed.
Israeli authorities largely turn a blind eye and do nothing. "Over 90% of monitored complaints regarding settler violence filed by Palestinians with the Israeli police in recent years have been closed without indictment."
Whitewash is official policy. Settlers are free to attack, injure, and destroy. Why not? Who'll stop them. Every day is Kristallnacht in Palestine. Israeli security forces and supportive Fatah ones conduct their own reign of terror.
Settler attacks alone are out-of-control. "Discriminatory protections and privileges (they get) compound these abuses and create an environment in which (they) can act with apparent impunity."
Government failure to act encourages violence. Settlers believe they enjoy "tacit support of the state of Israel."
Farmers in their fields are assaulted. Children heading to or from school or at play are attacked. Most settlers are nonviolent. Too many others hate Arabs and show it.
