Israeli security officials, according to the Jerusalem Post's Avi Ashkenazi, reported on April 6 that they had obtained a document that apparently kept track of the terrorist activities that violent “settlers” carried out in the West Bank against Palestinians. The document, entitled “Summary of the month in the struggle against the Arab enemy in the Holy Land during the month of Adar” (actually, the 30 days from Feb. 17 to March 18), was authored by “far Right activists” who organize and deploy the “Hilltop Youth"—ostensibly, a gang of mindless, rampaging youth.
Their accounting document lists, quoting Jerusalem Post, “the number of Arabs injured, mosques set on fire, windows shattered, how many olive trees were cut down, and how many tires were punctured, among other types of attack. It also lists which villages were attacked throughout the month, along with a count indicating how many times the group launched an attack there.”
Israel’s military and security officials have given a free hand to the organized violence against Palestinians; however, occasionally some have tried to restrain the thuggish activities over concerns for a violent reaction or over international condemnation. Such a tug back on the leash has happened less and less since Netanyahu brought Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich (Security and Treasury Ministers) into the government in December 2022.
