It is accurate in the sense that there are indeed certain
elements living in Judea and Samaria (the West Bank) who have literally lost
all sense of morality when it comes to Palestinians in general, and especially
those living nearby. They see every Palestinian as a mortal enemy of the Jewish
people and treat them accordingly whenever they encounter them.
Even worse, they sometimes take revenge on Palestinian
villages and their residents after a Jew is murdered in a terrorist attack—even
though those residents had absolutely nothing to do with it. This has happened
more than once. It involves settlers—better described as extremists—in greater
numbers than many well-intentioned apologists are willing to admit. I also
suspect that there are more than a few IDF soldiers serving in those areas who
sympathize with them.
But even if every Palestinian living in the West Bank hated
Jews with religious fervor, that would not justify attacking innocent people
who have done nothing to harm a single Jew.
It is precisely the religious zeal of these extremist
settlers that leads them to believe it is a mitzvah to expel every Arab from
Greater Israel so that the entire Land of Israel can be settled by Jews. Far
from helping Israel, this only fuels Palestinian hatred. The mitzvah of
settling the Land of Israel is no justification for what these people do in its
name. it is almost as if that were the only mitzvah they care about.
The result is that all settlers are condemned because of the
actions of these extremists.
Is that condemnation justified? One might think so based on
what I have just described. But the truth is far more complicated.
Violence in Judea and Samaria is not a one-way street. In
fact, Palestinian violence in the West Bank dwarfs settler violence. Yet by
using the term “settler violence” without sufficient context, the
implication is that all 750,000 Jewish residents of Judea, Samaria, and eastern
Jerusalem are violent extremists who spend their days harassing Palestinians—or
worse.
Nothing could be further from the truth…
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