Israel Matzav

Israel's war on the far right

By far the biggest news story this evening - it took up almost half of Israel Television's news magazine - is the government's war on the so-called 'price tag' attackers. As the day comes to a close, it appears that Prime Minister Netanyahu, at least, has understood, that escalating hysteria is not going to resolve the problem. Netanyahu this evening rejected an effort to have the vandals (yes, that's all they are) declared terrorists and to have the IDF's open fire orders amended to allow them to be fired upon! He did, however, allow them to be subjected to administrative detention, an odious practice that dates back to the British Mandate and which was used by the Peres-led Labor government in the period after Prime Minister Rabin's assassination to shut the mouths of dissent. Administrative detention allows law enforcement authorities to hold people for months on end without trial.

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has accepted proposals by the ministers for public security and justice, but rejected calls for far-right groups to be labeled as terrorist organizations.

The recommendations included an immediate issuing of administrative arrest warrants for suspects, increasing the number of restraining orders placed on suspects, and trying them in military courts.

The recommendations were made after Public Security Minister Yitzhak Ahronovitch and Justicer Minister Yaakov Ne'eman met with the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency), police, prosecutors, and the army. The ministers also called for greater resources to be made available for investigations.

Netanyahu rejected the call to categorize far-right elements as terrorist organizations.

"Anyone who raises a hand on IDF soldiers or police officers will be severely punished," Netanyahu said. The prime minister called for far-right rioters to be treated in the same manner as Palestinian and far-left rioters in the West Bank village of Bi'lin. He added that the number of suspects is small, and that it did not represent the majority of settlers in the West Bank "who are loyal to the state and its laws."

The Shin Bet joined several police investigations into a series of far-right arson and vandalism attacks across the country, police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld told The Jerusalem Post Wednesday.

The Shin Bet's increased involvement underlines growing concerns by authorities over the scope of radical nationalist activities, and the lack of intelligence which has so far prevented law enforcement from preemptively moving to stop the succession of attacks.

"The Shin Bet is working with local and national police districts on the investigations. Coordination between police and the Shin Bet will continue to expand in the coming days," Rosenfeld said.

The incident that really has people here riled up is this one, which took place overnight between Monday and Tuesday.

Around 12:30 a.m. Tuesday some 30-50 Israeli extremists, including many teens, broke into the Ephraim brigade headquarters, located down a small road from the Kedumim settlement in Samaria, according to security sources.

Most of the combat soldiers normally stationed there were involved in activities outside the base, Mizrahi said.

The extremists burned tires, spread nails on a road and threw stones and paint bottles at vehicles, the IDF spokesman said.

According to Mizrahi they also punctured the tires of two vehicles. A rock was also thrown at the deputy brigade commander Harpaz Zur.

The rioters, he said, yelled at Zur, whose grandmother is a Holocaust survivor, that he was a “Nazi.”

As Mizrahi spoke with reporters outside the Ephraim brigade he defended the actions of those soldiers on the base, who did not arrest the extremists.

Their first priority, he said, was to defend the base, by forcing the vandals out. In some cases, they tussled with the activists and physically forced them out, he said.

According to Border Police, one 20-year-old resident of Beit El was arrested for trying to block an access road to the base by placing stones across it.

Mizrahi said the Ephraim Brigade headquarters are there so soldiers can work day and night to defend Israeli citizens in the area against terror attacks. The ID0F, he said, should not have to “protect the base from Jewish rioters.” Israeli forces have a responsibility to uphold the law and to execute government orders, such as the demolition of outposts, he said. Order, Mizrahi said, has to be restored before the severity of these incidents increase.

“If the government orders us to evacuate Ramat Gilad, we will do it,” he said.

He called on settlement leaders to do more to halt such attacks.

“I have not heard a serious enough condemnation,” he said.

But Dani Dayan, who heads the Council of Jewish Communities of Judea, Samaria and the Gaza Strip, said Tuesday that such actions were shameful.

Dayan personally called Cahana to apologize and told him that he understands how hard he works to safeguard Israeli lives.

There was also a riot in Jerusalem on Wednesday, when police went to the Kiryat Moshe neighborhood to arrest some of the price tag attackers who were believed to be there.

Right-wing activists clashed with police forces in Jerusalem Wednesday during arrests made against suspected "price tag" act perpetrators.

The ensuing riot saw the suspects damage several police cruisers, shattering the windshield of one and slashing the tires of another.

The rightists claimed that three people were hurt during the skirmish: "Apparently the police are implementing the politicians' recommendations to 'stick it' to the Right," one of the rioters told Ynet.

MK Aryeh Eldad (National Union) summed it up best:

"Anyone urging firing at settlers is taking a big chance," MK Arieh Eldad (National Union) said.

"Alongside the censure of 'price tag' acts against innocent Arabs, mosques and IDF soldiers, we must also censure such advocating throwing the settlers to the wolves," Eldad said.

"There are definitely more lunatics around and we need a good dose of sanity – Jews mustn’t stone IDF soldiers and IDF troops mustn’t, heaven forbid, open fire on Jews."

JPost quotes Eldad as saying:

MK Arye Eldad (National Union) responded by saying that there clearly are too many crazy people, and that the IDF must stop "price tag" activists from harming soldiers and innocent Arabs, but some sanity must be brought into the situation.

"Jews shouldn't through rocks and IDF soldiers, and IDF soldiers shouldn't, God forbid, shoot at Jews," he said. "Whoever calls to shoot settlers is trying to light a fire in hope that he can build his future on the ashes."

Anyone who thinks that Israel can just walk away from Judea and Samaria ought to think again.

Labels: Arieh Eldad, IDF Judea and Samaria Division, price tag attacks

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 12:25 AM