Last October, an Israeli settler in the West Bank set a Palestinian home on fire. In January, a mob of settlers chased a truck driver and two of his workers, sending all three to the hospital. And last fall, a settler shot a Palestinian in the stomach in front of an Israeli soldier. Yet the authorities have not charged any of these settlers — or others who have attacked West Bank residents — with crimes.
These stories come from a multiyear investigation that my colleagues Ronen Bergman and Mark Mazzetti have just published in The Times Magazine. In it, they document how violent factions within the settler movement have repeatedly received protection from the Israeli government despite attacks against Palestinians — and even against Israeli officials who tried to challenge the settlers.
“A long history of crime without punishment,” Ronen and Mark write, “threatens not only Palestinians living in the occupied territories but also the State of Israel itself.” Their story, they explain, “is an account of a sometimes criminal nationalistic movement that has been allowed to operate with impunity and gradually move from the fringes to the mainstream of Israeli society.”
The government has accepted settler violence for decades, leaving many West Bank Palestinians feeling frightened and helpless. An Israeli government report in 1982 documented the problem, to no effect. So did later reports in 2005 and 2012.
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Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister for most of the past three decades, has played a central role. He regained power in 2022 by inviting the radical parts of the settler movement into his government. One of these radicals is Itamar Ben-Gvir, the national security minister, who in 1995 vaguely threatened the life of Yitzhak Rabin, then the prime minister, who was trying to restrain the settlers. Weeks later, a right-wing nationalist murdered Rabin.
In today’s newsletter, I want to tell about some of the key points from Ronen and Mark’s story and also put it the larger context of the war in Gaza.
Netanyahu opposes a Palestinian state, calling it a threat to Israel’s security. As prime minister, he has repeatedly tried to undermine a two-state solution. Netanyahu has sidelined more moderate Palestinian leaders who recognize Israel’s right to exist. He instead preferred to leave Hamas in power in Gaza (until the Oct. 7 attacks, that is).
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Israel’s endorsement of settler lawlessness is part of this pattern. By abetting the violent takeover of parts of the West Bank, Netanyahu has made an Israeli withdrawal from that territory — a necessary part of a two-state solution — much harder.
As is often the case with this conflict, both sides deserve blame. Palestinian leaders have repeatedly undermined a two-state solution, as well. They rejected a U.N. proposal in 1947 that would have created a Palestinian state, calling it unacceptable. They rejected another offer during talks led by President Bill Clinton in 2000. Instead, Palestinian militants launched a series of terrorist attacks known as the Second Intifada.
More recently, Palestinian activists have increasingly called for a single state, stretching from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea, which would mean the end of the world’s only Jewish state — one place Jews could flee for safety if antisemitism took hold elsewhere.
Still, as remote as it may now seem, the prospect of a two-state solution is not dead. Arab and U.S. leaders, as well as many Israelis and Palestinians, continue to believe it is the best hope for lasting peace.
The article by Mark and Ronen is important partly because it highlights how much Israel’s government will need to change in order for a Palestinian state to become a reality. As they write:
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The first documents the unequal system of justice that grew around Jewish settlements in Gaza and the West Bank. The second shows how extremists targeted Palestinians as well as Israeli officials trying to make peace. The third explains how this movement gained control of the state itself. You can read it all here.
These stories come from a multiyear investigation that my colleagues Ronen Bergman and Mark Mazzetti have just published in The Times Magazine. In it, they document how violent factions within the settler movement have repeatedly received protection from the Israeli government despite attacks against Palestinians — and even against Israeli officials who tried to challenge the settlers.
“A long history of crime without punishment,” Ronen and Mark write, “threatens not only Palestinians living in the occupied territories but also the State of Israel itself.” Their story, they explain, “is an account of a sometimes criminal nationalistic movement that has been allowed to operate with impunity and gradually move from the fringes to the mainstream of Israeli society.”
The government has accepted settler violence for decades, leaving many West Bank Palestinians feeling frightened and helpless. An Israeli government report in 1982 documented the problem, to no effect. So did later reports in 2005 and 2012.
Advertisement
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Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister for most of the past three decades, has played a central role. He regained power in 2022 by inviting the radical parts of the settler movement into his government. One of these radicals is Itamar Ben-Gvir, the national security minister, who in 1995 vaguely threatened the life of Yitzhak Rabin, then the prime minister, who was trying to restrain the settlers. Weeks later, a right-wing nationalist murdered Rabin.
In today’s newsletter, I want to tell about some of the key points from Ronen and Mark’s story and also put it the larger context of the war in Gaza.
Two states?
A major impediment to a truce in Gaza today is Netanyahu’s unwillingness to develop a long-term plan for the territory. (Some geographical background: Mark and Ronen’s story focuses on the West Bank, which, like Gaza, is a Palestinian territory that Israel occupies.) The U.S. and Arab countries both say that any such plan must take steps toward a two-state solution that would include the creation of a Palestinian state.
Netanyahu opposes a Palestinian state, calling it a threat to Israel’s security. As prime minister, he has repeatedly tried to undermine a two-state solution. Netanyahu has sidelined more moderate Palestinian leaders who recognize Israel’s right to exist. He instead preferred to leave Hamas in power in Gaza (until the Oct. 7 attacks, that is).
Advertisement
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Israel’s endorsement of settler lawlessness is part of this pattern. By abetting the violent takeover of parts of the West Bank, Netanyahu has made an Israeli withdrawal from that territory — a necessary part of a two-state solution — much harder.
As is often the case with this conflict, both sides deserve blame. Palestinian leaders have repeatedly undermined a two-state solution, as well. They rejected a U.N. proposal in 1947 that would have created a Palestinian state, calling it unacceptable. They rejected another offer during talks led by President Bill Clinton in 2000. Instead, Palestinian militants launched a series of terrorist attacks known as the Second Intifada.
More recently, Palestinian activists have increasingly called for a single state, stretching from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea, which would mean the end of the world’s only Jewish state — one place Jews could flee for safety if antisemitism took hold elsewhere.
Still, as remote as it may now seem, the prospect of a two-state solution is not dead. Arab and U.S. leaders, as well as many Israelis and Palestinians, continue to believe it is the best hope for lasting peace.
The article by Mark and Ronen is important partly because it highlights how much Israel’s government will need to change in order for a Palestinian state to become a reality. As they write:
You can read the main takeaways from their story in this short article. But I recommend making time for the full version today or this weekend. It contains three parts that you can read in pieces.
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The first documents the unequal system of justice that grew around Jewish settlements in Gaza and the West Bank. The second shows how extremists targeted Palestinians as well as Israeli officials trying to make peace. The third explains how this movement gained control of the state itself. You can read it all here.
