Haaretz Writer: Settler Attacks Are an Official Policy for Annexing the West Bank

SadaNews - Settler attacks in the West Bank are no longer isolated incidents or individual deviations; rather, they have become a central tool in Israeli policy aimed at officially annexing the territory to the occupying state as a reality, according to an analysis published by Haaretz.

Jack Khoury, the editor of Arab affairs at the newspaper, argues in his article that what is happening in the West Bank can no longer be characterized as seasonal waves of violence or isolated clashes; instead, it is a new reality stemming from a systematic Israeli policy aimed at entrenching the effective annexation of Palestinian lands.

He confirms that the rising attacks by settlers are no longer mere random incidents related to specific seasons such as the olive harvest, but rather a reflection of a systematic Israeli government policy aimed at the effective annexation of Palestinian lands.

Systematic Action

Khoury debunks the official narrative that tries to confine violence to a "radical minority," describing it as a misleading narrative, and emphasizing that these aggressors operate under cover and support, and sometimes with the involvement of the security and political institutions that grant them absolute immunity from accountability, while strict deterrence is exercised on Palestinians.

He points out that the presence of the army and police in the field does not provide protection for Palestinians, but rather enhances the aggressors' sense of security, amidst a stark discrimination between those whom the system protects and those who are left unprotected.

The article cites recent incidents - such as the attack on a family in the village of Samoua south of Hebron, and gunfire near the town of Anata northeast of occupied Jerusalem - to illustrate that settlers have begun using military weapons against defenseless civilians, killing their livestock and destroying their properties as part of a strategy to intimidate and expel Palestinians.

In contrast, the article highlights the complete impotence of the Palestinian Authority, which has become "irrelevant" and unable to protect its citizens, while local self-protection attempts fail due to Israeli military repression.

Impotent International Community

In parallel with the violence, the Israeli government continues its steps, which it describes as legal, to entrench creeping annexation by legalizing 19 new settlement outposts and injecting massive investments into the infrastructure of the West Bank without an official declaration under the pretext of security, according to the article.

The international community, including the United Nations, Europe, and major powers, appears - the writer continues - powerless or indifferent to protecting Palestinians.

Khoury directed a message to U.S. President Donald Trump, warning that claims of achieving a "historic peace" are in direct contradiction to the bloody reality in the West Bank.

He stated that another war is brewing in the West Bank, which is "quieter, less noisy, and no less destructive" than the one that erupted "and perhaps stopped" in the Gaza Strip.