SETTLER VIOLENCE IN THE WEST BANK CONTINUES

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 JERUSALEM 001184 SIPDIS NEA FOR FRONT OFFICE AND IPA; NSC FOR SHAPIRO/KUMAR; JOINT STAFF FOR LTGEN SELVA E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/08/2019 TAGS: PREL PGOV PINR PHUM IS KWBG KPAL PTER SUBJECT: SETTLER VIOLENCE IN THE WEST BANK CONTINUES REF: A. JERUSALEM 807 ¶B. JERUSALEM 698 ¶C. JERUSALEM 876 Classified By: Consul General Jake Walles, for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) Summary. NGO contacts, UNRWA, and local Palestinian sources report continuing incidents of settler violence in the West Bank. Reports of violence include settlers setting fire to Palestinian agricultural land, throwing stones at vehicles carrying Palestinians, and attacking Palestinian homes. Most incidents have occurred in areas around Nablus and Hebron. NGO contacts claim the recent wave of settler violence is in part a reaction to the U.S. call for an end to settlement growth and the GOI's evacuation of some small outposts. Several NGO contacts also noted that there is usually an uptick in settler violence during the summer months. Settlers were also the target of Palestinian stoning and Molotov cocktails during the same period. End summary. -------------- Settler Violence in June and July -------------- ¶2. (SBU) The following acts of settler violence were reported in the area around Nablus for the June 1 - July 7 period: -- June 1: Settlers attacked a minibus of Palestinian laborers near Jit, west of Nablus (Ref C). In testimonials collected by Israeli NGO B'Tselem, Palestinians injured in the attack described dozens of settlers throwing rocks at the vehicle, shattering the glass. Six were reported injured in the attack, one critically. -- June 3: UNRWA reported that settlers set fire to Palestinian agricultural land near Shave Shomeron settlement, northwest of Nablus. -- June 8: UNRWA and PA sources reported that settlers set fire to twenty dunums of Palestinian agricultural land planted with olive trees in Awarta village, south of Nablus. -- June 11: Local sources reported that settlers set fire to approximately eight dunums of agricultural land between Aqrabah and Yunun villages, east of Nablus. -- June 14: UNRWA reported that settlers attacked Palestinian houses in Jit village, west of Nablus, causing damage to property. -- June 15: PA sources reported that dozens of settlers set fire to more than twenty-five dunums of land planted with wheat near Liban al Sharqiya, south of Nablus. -- June 24: PA sources and UNRWA reported that settlers damaged a Palestinian house under construction, threw stones at workers, and damaged construction materials and water containers in Burin, south of Nablus. -- June 26: UNRWA reported that settlers physically assaulted Palestinian farmers, injuring two, in Kafr al Labad, west of Nablus. -- June 29: Local sources reported that dozens of settlers from Yizhar and Berakha settlements broke into residences and destroyed agricultural land in Asirah Al-Qibliya and Far'atah southwest of Nablus. -- July 4: PA sources reported that settlers attacked a house under construction on the outskirts of Burin. -- July 6: Local PA sources reported that settlers burned more than ten dunums of land in Bourin. ¶3. (SBU) The following settler violence was reported in the area around Hebron for the June 1 - July 7 period: -- June 4: UNRWA reported that settlers from Bat Ayin settlement set fire to Palestinian agricultural land in Khirbet Safa. -- June 10: PA sources in Hebron reported that settlers set fire to fields belonging to Palestinians in the H2 area of Hebron. -- June 13: UNRWA reported that settlers from Bat Ayin JERUSALEM 00001184 002 OF 002 physically assaulted Palestinian farmers from Safa village and international peace activists. Two Palestinians were reported injured. -- June 21: Local sources reported that Israeli settlers were suspected to have set fire to trees near the village of Bet Ummar, north of Hebron. The same sources reported that also on June 21, Israeli settlers set fire to a tent used by Palestinians near Yatta village, south of Hebron. The sources said three Palestinians were slightly injured in the attack. -- June 22: UNRWA reported that settlers from Bat Ayin settlement set fire to and cut down approximately 120 trees belonging to Palestinians in Abu Rish Valley, north of Hebron. -- June 28: UNRWA reported that settlers from Kiryat Arba' settlement assaulted and injured one Palestinian in the Old City of Hebron. -- July 7: Local sources reported that settlers from Bat Ayin burned agricultural fields in Khirbet Safa village, north of Hebron. -------------- Settlers Feel Threatened -------------- ¶4. (C) Arik Ascherman, head of Israeli NGO "Rabbis for Human Rights" told PolOff on July 8 that settlers feel threatened by the U.S. call for a freeze on settlement activity, and described the recent wave of violence as a response to this pressure. Ascherman opined that since the election of Prime Minister Netanyahu, IDF soldiers feel less compelled to protect Palestinians from settler violence, producing an "atmosphere of permissiveness" for settler attacks. In separate conversations with PolOff on July 8 and July 9, Laetitia Courtois, head of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Nablus office, and Lior Yavne, Researcher with Israeli NGO Yesh Din, both assessed settler violence over the past months as an expression of revenge for the GOI's evacuation of some small outposts. However, both Courtois and Lavne noted that the summer months often witness an uptick in settler violence, regardless of political developments. ¶5. (SBU) During the same time period, there were also reports of Palestinians throwing stones and Molotov cocktails at Israeli vehicles on roads in the West Bank. WALLES