Settlers’ Terror escalated after Ben-Gvir instructed the Israeli police to protect and not pursue them.

By: Madeeha Al-A’raj
The ‘National Bureau for Defending Land and Resisting Settlements stated in its latest weekly report , that the Jewish terrorist organizations that use settlements, outposts, and pastoral farms as safe havens to carry out acts of violence and terror in the West Bank, and launching points for their attacks against Palestinian citizens and their property, under the full protection of the occupation army and clear complicity of the Israeli police, specifically the ‘Shai Police’ operating in the West Bank’, which deliberately ignores hundreds of complaints submitted by the Palestinian citizens, and closes crime files without opening serious investigations.
Within the context, official data recently released by the Israeli Police in response to a request from the Movement for Freedom of Information reveals a clear decline in police response to settler crimes against Palestinians in the West Bank. It showed that the Palestinians filed 427 complaints in the 1st half of 2025 concerning settler attacks, including physical assaults, arson, and the destruction of agricultural land, compared to about 680 complaints filed during the entire year of 2024.
Despite the increase in the number of complaints, the Israeli police opened only 156 criminal investigations, represent 37% of the total complaints filed, while in 2024 they opened 308 investigations, representing 45% of all cases filed by Palestinians following settler attacks.
It noted that the Central Unit of the Israeli police in the West Bank (Shai-Yehuda and Samaria), responsible for investigating nationalist crimes and Jewish terrorism, has been operating without a permanent commander for a year, following the dismissal of its former head, Avshai Mualem. Mualem was dismissed on suspicion of deliberately ignoring information concerning far-right activities to appease Ben-Gvir. According to Israeli press reports, Mualem is suspected of deliberately ignoring intelligence regarding the activities of extremist settlers and refraining from arresting them in an effort to please Minister Ben-Gvir, hoping for a promotion. Mualem also faces suspicions of bribery, fraud, breach of trust, and abuse of power.
During his term in office, Mualem consistently denied the increase in settler terrorism, claiming a decrease, while the Jewish Affairs Department of the Shin Bet security service confirmed that these crimes were steadily rising. The Israeli Shai Police in the West Bank are currently led by Moshe Ben-Gvir, a figure close to Ben-Gvir, who previously served as his security secretary, raising further doubts about the police s work and its -dir-ection to serve a political agenda that turns a blind eye to settler terrorism.
If we shed light on the role of the occupation police and so-called law enforcement agencies in addressing violations and attacks against Palestinian citizens, the picture becomes more complete. The failure of these police and agencies to fulfill their duties is not a recent phenomenon, nor did it begin with Ben-Gvir and the extreme right-wing fascist government in the occupying state. Rather, it is a policy that has been in place for years, while it is true that the situation under this government and Ben-Gvir s policies has exacerbated the problem, the issue is more complex than that.
The majority cases of nationalist crimes committed by Jews against Palestinians in the West Bank over the past twenty years have been closed without indictments. This is evident from data collected by the Yesh Din organization between 2005 and 2024. This organization monitored 1,701 investigations into extreme nationalist offenses against Palestinians in the so-called ‘Judea and Samaria District’ of the occupation police. About 94 percent of the cases investigated were closed without indictments, and only 3% of those indictments resulted in full´-or-partial convictions.
At the same time, the association s investigations revealed a decline in the percentage of Palestinian victims willing to file police complaints regarding nationalist-extremist violence over the past decade. This trend continued in the last 2 years, following Itamar Ben-Gvir s appointment as Minister of National Security in the occupation government. In 2024, 66% of victims surveyed indicated they were not interested in filing a police complaint ‘101 out of 153 cases’, compared to 27%, who answered ‘yes’ in 2021.
Among the prominent cases in recent years that never resulted in charges is the horrific violence in Huwara in Feb. 2023, in which Sameh al-Aqtash was killed in the neighboring village of Za tara. One of the victims, a resident of Huwara whose shop was burned during the riots, filed a complaint with the assistance of the Israeli organization Yesh Din on the day of the incident, only to be informed in Sep. 2023 that the case has been closed. A similar pattern of police behavior occurred in July 2024 when Palestinians were attacked by settlers in Khirbet-Nahla, near the Efrat settlement. ‘We were on our land, and the settlers attacked us,’ said a resident.
‘They broke down the fence, shot me in the leg, hit me on the head with a stick, and pepper-sprayed me. Many in my family were injured. My uncle needed a metal plate, and they broke my cousin’s leg.’ The attack was documented, but nothing happened. The same was true in horrific attacks in the villages of Doma and Al-Mughayir-;- no indictments were filed. The same occurred in the appalling acts of terrorism in the village of Ja’t, where homes were set on fire, a young Palestinian man was shot, and killed. In some cases, individuals were placed under administrative detention, but this was halted by orders from the Israeli Army Minister, Yisrael Katz. In all these cases, no indictments were filed.
A new step taken by the Movement for Freedom of Information exposes the clear decline in the police s handling of settler crimes against Palestinians in the West Bank, data according to a recent report published by Haaretz, indicates a widening gap in Israeli security and legal inaction in prosecuting perpetrators of nationalist crimes against Palestinians. This reflects institutional complicity that facilitates settlers impunity and encourages the continuation of violence in the West Bank.
Haaretz s police affairs correspondent, Joshua Brenner reported in one of his articles that recent data released by the Israeli police reveals a clear decline in their handling of settler terrorist crimes against Palestinians in the West Bank. He explained that most of the investigation files opened during the first half of 2025 concerned attacks carried out by settlers, including arson of Palestinian property, vandalism of agricultural land, physical assault on civilians, and stone-throwing. Despite the scale of these crimes, the police data made no mention whatsoever of any investigations into the murders of Palestinians by settlers.
According to the data, the police arrested only 44 settlers in the first half of this year, compared to 71 settlers during the whole of 2024, which reflects the continued security laxity in dealing with settler terrorism despite its unprecedented escalation since the beginning of this year.
The settlers violence and terrorism go hand in hand with new settlement plans. Under pressure from FM and Minister of Settlement Affairs Smotrich, along with several ministers from his party and the Likud Party, the occupation government is pushing forward with additional settlement projects in the occupied West Bank. They are also pushing to implement as many plans as possible, as approved by the Civil Administration s planning council, before the upcoming general elections, and to approve settlement projects to be implemented later.
The aim is to create facts on the ground should the current government change. Smotrich claims that, in his capacity within the Civil Administration, he has initiated the approval of about 48,000 settlement housing units, and he expects the number to reach 50,000 by the end of this year, according to a report in Yediot Aharonot last Tuesday. According to the newspaper, approximately 26,000 dunams of West Bank land have been confiscated under the pretext of declaring them ‘State land’ during Netanyahu s current term.
This is in addition to the 28,000 dunams confiscated in the preceding 27 years. The aim of these intensive settlement projects is to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state. The newspaper quoted Yoni Mizrahi, head of the Settlement Watch team at the Peace Now movement, as saying, ‘Although US President Trump prohibited the Israeli government from imposing sovereignty, during the current government s term, a de facto annexation is being implemented, which is clearly visible and felt on the ground.’
It is expected that Smotrich will push forward with settlement projects before the general elections, scheduled for next Oct´-or-earlier if they are brought forward. The newspaper stated that one of the central objectives is to expand settlements in ‘strategic areas’ of the West Bank in order to sever Palestinian territorial contiguity and thwart the establishment of a Palestinian state.
On another level, the Israeli government is proceeding with its policy of falsifying heritage in this country, having approved additional funding of NIS 40,000,000 to strengthen its control over archaeological sites in the occupied West Bank, as part of policies of falsifying history and looting historical sites under the pretext of ‘protecting national heritage’. This government s decision came as part of a so-called ‘long-term rescue plan’ that began in 2023 under the pretext of ‘combating the looting of antiquities, accelerating restoration and development work, and making what it calls national heritage sites accessible to the Israeli public.’
This plan is overseen by the Israeli Minister of Heritage, Amichai Eliyahu, who, in the early days of the brutal war on the Gaza Strip, called for dropping nuclear bombs on its inhabitants and declared a few days ago that his ministry ‘will not wait for the formal imposition of sovereignty over the West Bank,’ referring to the expansion of Israeli control over archaeological sites in the occupied West Bank. The decision encompasses archaeological sites throughout the West Bank, which the occupation authorities claim are linked to Jewish history, and through which they seek to seize them, erase their identity, and loot their contents.
The new funding, approved by the Israeli government, is distributed across the 2025 and 2026 budgets, comprising funds from several ministries, including education, culture, security, environment, transportation, settlements, and justice, in addition to allocations from coalition agreements under the heading ‘development of tourist and historical sites.’
This decision complements a plan approved in 2013. In 2023, NIS 109,000,000 were allocated to it, including NIS 89,000,000 for what the occupation authorities call ‘saving, restoring and developing heritage and archaeological sites,’ and NIS 20,000,000 for developing a historical site in Jericho, which is one of the Palestinian archaeological sites that Israel is working to transform into a biblical symbol.
List of Israeli Assaults over the Last Week Documented by the National Bureau:
Jerusalem:
- Attacking some Palestinian farmers with stones in the Wadi al-Madina area, attempting to expel them from their land while they were harvesting olives, protected by the Israeli occupation forces. Other settlers attacked the Khirbet al-Sidra Bedouin Community and set fire to residents homes.
- Attacking the Arab al-Ara ra Bedouin Community east of Jaba , pouring flammable materials on olive trees adjacent to the community, causing a fire in the surrounding olive groves.
- Issuing demolition orders for 6 industrial facilities and homes in the towns of Anata and Qalandiya, and ordered the evacuation of 2 residential buildings and agricultural land.
- Issuing demolition orders for 6 industrial facilities in Anata town, including 6 large industrial projects such as iron and furniture factories, in addition to stop-work orders for several homes. Among the structures targeted were a tile warehouse and a house under construction.
- Issuing evacuation orders for 2 residential buildings, truck parking areas, and agricultural land in Qalandia, claiming they were located within an area confiscated for the expansion of the Atarot settlement industrial zone since the 1970s and 1980s. The occupation authorities also issued demolition orders for homes in the Al-Za im town, handed over demolition and stop-work orders to 15 homes in the Al-Sa idi Community within Al-Za im. They also notified several of these homes that the demolitions would be carried out within 3 days, claiming the area was a ‘firing zone.’
- Forcing Jumaa Abdel-Moein Al-Salaymeh to demolish his house in the Wadi Qaddum Neighborhood of Silwan, threatened him if he didn’t do so, they would do that and to pay NIS 80,000 in demolition costs. They also forced Taher Darbas to demolish his own home in the Issawiya Neighborhood to avoid paying exorbitant demolition fees.
- Continuing demolition campaign targeting small shops, kiosks, and street vendors stalls around Damascus Gate, one of the main entrances to the Old City. This campaign was carried out under heavy protection from Israeli police, who prevented the owners from accessing their properties.
Hebron:
- Plowing Palestinian-owned land in the Al-Buq a area south of Hebron, one of the most important agricultural areas in the region and a primary source of livelihood for residents, as part of an attempt to impose new realities on the ground. In the town of Sa ir, Israeli occupation forces prevented farmers from harvesting their olive crops and forced them to leave the area. Settlers also cut down approximately 80 mature olive trees in the Wadi Sa ir area of the town using chainsaws, completely destroying them.
- Storming the village of Al-Twaiba and prevented residents from leaving their homes´-or-moving around the area for several hours.
- Attacking citizens’ agricultural lands east of the Sikka village and the town of Beit Awa, and plowed more than 500 dunams of them during the past few days.
- Attacking the house of citizen Mah’d Ahmed Al-Daghameen in the ‘Wadi Ajheish’ area southeast of the A-Samou town, broke its doors, smashed his private vehicle, and attacked his sheep, causing the death of a number of them. They also fired toxic tear gas canisters towards the house, causing the children of citizen Al-Dahameen to suffer from suffocation.
- Blocking the main road leading to the Arab Zuweidin Community in the eastern desert of Yatta, disrupting the movement of residents and prevented students and teachers from reaching their schools.
- Storming the Khirbet Um Khair in the Masafer Yatta area and delivered a number of final demolition orders, a move that residents fear is a prelude to a large-scale demolition campaign in the coming days. Residents reported that the orders targeted several homes and residential and service structures, including a final demolition order for the Um al-Khair community center, a greenhouse, and 12 dwellings belonging to the Al-Hathalin family.
Bethlehem:
- Chopping scores of olive trees belonging to Mah’d Jabarin in the village of Al-Minya, south of Bethlehem. The trees, planted on 2 dunams of land in an area known as ‘Al-Karm’, were attacked by settlers who also assaulted Jabarin, breaking his hand.
- Attacking Palestinians, who suffered from tear gas inhalation in the Nahalin town, west of Bethlehem.
- Preventing residents from accessing their land in the Ein-Balad and Ein-Faris areas to harvest their olives, firing stun grenades and tear gas at them, causing several to suffer from tear gas inhalation.
- Attacking Palestinians in the Khallat Al-Nakhla area near the village of Wadi Rahal, south of Bethlehem. They stormed the land of Issa Khalil Odeh and began harvesting olives, resulting in injuries to Khalil Moh’d Khalawi, 60.
Ramallah:
- Setting fire to 3 vehicles in the village of Deir Dibwan in the Tel area before fleeing. Others burned 2 vehicles during an attack on the town of Atara, carried out under the protection of occupation forces, who were deployed around the town.
- Attacking farmers and international solidarity activists in the town of Kafr Malik, as they were heading to their land in the southern areas near the bypass road and the ‘Al-Manatir area’ to the east, forcing them to turn back.
- Injuring 3 Palestinians after being attacked by settlers in the village of Deir Nizam, who forced them to leave their land.
- Attacking the Al-Mughayyir village and burned residents vehicles, while other settlers stole olives from land in the Al-Khala il area south of the village belonging to a resident of the neighboring town of Turmusaya.
- Preventing farmers from accessing their land in Sinjil to begin the olive harvest under heavy security protection.
- Demolishing Palestinian homes and structures in the town of Shuqba. The demolitions targeted 2 houses, one of which was under construction and belonged to the Ahmed Shalash family, consisting of 2 floors, and the other belonged to the Musa Sweilem family and included 1 floor, in addition to retaining walls in the area.
Nablus:
- Attacking farmers in the Sabastia town, while they were harvesting olives, assaulting them and stealing their harvest.
- Attacking olive pickers in the Khallat Al-Qatil area north of the Beit Dajan, town, prevented them from completing the harvest.
- Destroying the contents of the Khirbet Tana’ Mosque, located on land belonging to Beit Furik, including the remaining solar panels, and damaged carpets. Others destroyed what remained of the Al-Somod 3 School, after forcing 40 families from the area to leave it earlier this year.
- Demolishing the home of Ismail Sadiq Ismail s family in the village of Furush Beit Dajan.
- Expanding an outpost and began construction work near the Duma village, adding new units to the outpost in the Shakara area east of the village.
- Injuring 3 Palestinians after being attacked by settlers while harvesting olives in the Qabalan town, forced them to abandon their land.
- Bulldozing land and constructing a settlement road in the northern part of the Al-Lubban ash-Sharqiya village, known as Wadi Yasuf to expand the settlements of Ariel and Tapuach, which are built on land belonging to the city of Salfeet and its eastern and western villages, extending as far as Al-Lubban Ash-Sharqiya, south of Nablus.
- Cutting down about 50 olive saplings and stole construction equipment, cement bags, and tiles in the village of Beit Imrin. Meanwhile, settlers destroyed ancient olive trees in the lands of the Qariot village, south of Nablus.
Jordan Valley:
- Fencing land in preparation for seizing it in Khirbet al-Farsiyah in the northern Jordan Valley. It is registered in the land registry ‘Tabu’ and is being targeted as residents prepare for the new planting season, hoping to utilize rain-fed crops to provide fodder for their livestock.
- Stealing a residential tent and a livestock pen belonging to Zaid Sae’ed Abu Zaied in Khirbet Yarza, east of Tubas.
- Attacking the Arab-Rashaida area, terrorizing and vandalizing residents. In Khallat Khader Al-Farsiyah, a number of settlers damaged a water network serving scores of dunams of land belonging to Jamal Daraghmeh, and destroyed the corn crop that was irrigated by that network.

Rate the article
Bad	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	Very good
Result : 100%							Participated in the vote : 1