Israeli activists confront settlers to defend Palestinians

WEST BANK, Palestine (MNTV) — A small group of Israeli activists, many of them religious Jews, are confronting fellow Israelis in the occupied West Bank to protect Palestinians from escalating settler violence.

About 30 activists regularly travel to Palestinian communities where settlers have been accused of attacking residents, damaging property and attempting to drive families from their land.

Ziva Sharp, one of the activists, said her Jewish faith compelled her to oppose violence against Palestinians, even when that meant confronting Israelis who claim religious justification for their actions, according to Arab News.

Sharp said she joined the movement because she wanted to practice what she described as a humanistic and nonviolent form of Judaism while reducing the harm inflicted on Palestinians.

The activists recently traveled to Jannatah, near Bethlehem, to construct a protective fence around the home of the Faraj family, which has faced pressure from Israeli extremists.

Mohammed Faraj, a member of the family, was killed during clashes with settlers in March, while several of his relatives were wounded. His brother Hassan said nobody had been arrested in connection with the killing.

The activists also attempted to remove roadblocks preventing the family from reaching its property after settlers erected a prefabricated structure on the family’s land.

When the activists and accompanying journalists returned, they found their vehicles vandalized, with windows smashed and tires punctured.

The confrontation subsequently escalated when groups of settlers arrived in vehicles and attacked the activists. At least five activists were injured during the assault, according to the group. Stones were thrown, pepper spray was used and an AFP journalist was struck in the chin with a stick.

The activists said the attackers were connected to Kochav Yehuda, an outpost that they claimed has repeatedly been dismantled by Israeli authorities only to be rebuilt. According to the activists, the outpost has been removed 64 times, most recently just one day before their visit.

The settlers are associated with the extremist Hilltop Youth movement, which has been accused of using intimidation and violence to pressure Palestinians into abandoning their homes. The group has also established unauthorized outposts, some of which are illegal even under Israeli law.

The violence highlights the increasingly hostile conditions faced by Palestinians living under Israel’s decades-long occupation of the West Bank. More than 500,000 Israeli settlers now live in the territory alongside roughly three million Palestinians.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing government has continued advancing settlement construction, further deepening concerns among Palestinians and rights advocates over land seizures, displacement and settler violence.

The situation has also exposed a sharp contradiction within Israel’s religious and political landscape: while extremist settlers invoke Judaism to justify their actions, a smaller group of Jewish Israelis is risking violence to oppose the mistreatment of Palestinians.

Sharp said Jewish teachings emphasizing compassion, justice and the sanctity of human life were central to her decision to protect Palestinian communities.

Violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians has risen sharply since the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, adding another layer of insecurity to communities already living under military occupation and expanding settlement activity.