Yawn....... Israel attacked by Hamas
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Israeli precision-guided munition likely killed group of children playing foosball in Gaza, weapons experts say
By Jeremy Diamond, Sebastian Shukla, Mohammad Al-Sawalhi, Abeer Salman and Kareem Khadder, CNN Fri May 3, 2024 https://edition.cnn.com/2024/05/02/...uided-munition-maghazi-deaths-intl/index.html
The Israel Defense Forces have responded to questions from CNN about an airstrike in Gaza that killed a girl playing foosball, as well as nine other children. CNN's Jeremy Diamond reports.
IDF responds to questions about deadly airstrike that killed 10 children......
By Jeremy Diamond, Sebastian Shukla, Mohammad Al-Sawalhi, Abeer Salman and Kareem Khadder, CNN Fri May 3, 2024 https://edition.cnn.com/2024/05/02/...uided-munition-maghazi-deaths-intl/index.html
The Israel Defense Forces have responded to questions from CNN about an airstrike in Gaza that killed a girl playing foosball, as well as nine other children. CNN's Jeremy Diamond reports.
IDF responds to questions about deadly airstrike that killed 10 children......
Now this is becoming interesting!
How corrupt is American politics, oh I thought American Christian (Godly) Politics was fair, democratic, just, honest.....???
ICC Denounces Threats of Retaliation as Possible Netanyahu Arrest Warrant Looms
GOP lawmakers have reportedly threatened to pass legislation against the ICC if it moves forward with arrest warrants.
By Jake Johnson May 3, 2024
https://truthout.org/articles/icc-d...n-as-possible-netanyahu-arrest-warrant-looms/
Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court Karim Khan speaks during the Justice Ministers' conference at Lancaster House in London, U.K., on March 20, 2023. Yui Mok / PA Images via Getty Images
The office of International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan issued a statement Friday denouncing threats of retaliation after Israel’s prime minister and U.S. lawmakers attacked the intergovernmental body over reports that it is preparing arrest warrants for senior Israeli officials related to the war on Gaza.
The ICC statement, which does not mention any individual or country by name, says the court’s “independence and impartiality are undermined” when “individuals threaten to retaliate against the court or against court personnel should the office, in fulfillment of its mandate, make decisions about investigations or cases falling within its jurisdiction.”
“Such threats, even when not acted upon, may also constitute an offense against the administration of justice under Art. 70 of the Rome Statute,” the statement continues. “The office insists that all attempts to impede, intimidate, or improperly influence its officials cease immediately.”
The statement comes days after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he “expects the leaders of the free world to stand firmly against” any ICC arrest warrants for officials in Israel’s government.
“We expect them to use all the means at their disposal to stop this dangerous move,” said Netanyahu.
The U.S. celebrates the charges against Putin, but pressures the ICC to refrain from prosecuting Israelis and Americans. By Marjorie Cohn ,Truthout March 25, 2023
The New York Times reported over the weekend that Israeli officials “increasingly believe” that the ICC, which is based in The Hague, is preparing arrest warrants for top members of the country’s government, including Netanyahu. The ICC is also believed to be weighing arrest warrants for Hamas leaders.
“If the court proceeds, the Israeli officials could potentially be accused of preventing the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip and pursuing an excessively harsh response to the Hamas-led October 7 attacks on Israel,” the Times reported.
Bipartisan members of the U.S. Congress who have supported Israel’s devastating assault on Gaza have joined Netanyahu in condemning the ICC in recent days, pushing the Biden administration to fight any arrest warrants even though — like Israel — the U.S. is not a state party to the statute that created the court. Palestine joined the ICC in 2015.
“If unchallenged by the Biden administration, the ICC could create and assume unprecedented power to issue arrest warrants against American political leaders, American diplomats, and American military personnel,” House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said in a statement earlier this week.
On Wednesday, according toAxios, a bipartisan group of senators held a virtual meeting with senior ICC officials to voice “their concern about possible arrest warrants being issued for Israeli leaders over the war in Gaza.”
“If this is true, it should never have happened,” said Mark Kersten, an assistant professor focusing on human rights law, international criminal law, and Canadian law at the University of the Fraser Valley. “The U.S. is not a member-state of the ICC, and the court should not be holding meetings or accepting calls from the senators of a non-member state trying to undermine the institution’s independence and interfere with its work.”
Axios noted that Republican lawmakers have “threatened to pass legislation against the ICC if it moves forward with the arrest warrants, which the Biden administration has said it opposes.”
The Israeli government, for its part, has reportedly told the Biden administration that it would retaliate against the Palestinian Authority if the ICC issues arrest warrants for Israeli leaders.
The Biden White House has publicly spoken out against the ICC’s probe of Israeli war crimes in the occupied Palestinian territories, an investigation that began in 2021.
The U.S. stance has been slammed as hypocritical given the Biden administration’s vocal support for the ICC’s decision last year to issue an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin over war crimes committed in Ukraine. Neither Russia nor Ukraine are parties to the Rome Statute, which established the ICC.
In an op-ed for The Guardian earlier this week, former Human Rights Watch executive director Kenneth Roth wrote that while “the Israeli government is not about to surrender Netanyahu or his deputies for trial,” their “travel would suddenly be limited” if the ICC moves ahead with arrest warrants.
“Although the U.S. never joined the court, European governments have, meaning that suddenly Europe and much of the rest of the world would be out of bounds for those charged without risking arrest,” Roth observed. “It would also make it more difficult for Washington and London to pretend that their ongoing arming of the Israeli military is not contributing to war crimes.”
“In addition, an initial round of charges would be an implicit threat of more,” he continued. “As Netanyahu contemplates a potential invasion of Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah despite 1.4 million Palestinians sheltering there, he must worry about whether more civilian deaths would spur Khan to intensify investigation of Israel’s apparently indiscriminate and disproportionate attacks on civilians. The ICC thus may live up to its potential not only to provide retrospective justice, but also to deter future war crimes.”
How corrupt is American politics, oh I thought American Christian (Godly) Politics was fair, democratic, just, honest.....???
ICC Denounces Threats of Retaliation as Possible Netanyahu Arrest Warrant Looms
GOP lawmakers have reportedly threatened to pass legislation against the ICC if it moves forward with arrest warrants.
By Jake Johnson May 3, 2024
https://truthout.org/articles/icc-d...n-as-possible-netanyahu-arrest-warrant-looms/
Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court Karim Khan speaks during the Justice Ministers' conference at Lancaster House in London, U.K., on March 20, 2023. Yui Mok / PA Images via Getty Images
The office of International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan issued a statement Friday denouncing threats of retaliation after Israel’s prime minister and U.S. lawmakers attacked the intergovernmental body over reports that it is preparing arrest warrants for senior Israeli officials related to the war on Gaza.
The ICC statement, which does not mention any individual or country by name, says the court’s “independence and impartiality are undermined” when “individuals threaten to retaliate against the court or against court personnel should the office, in fulfillment of its mandate, make decisions about investigations or cases falling within its jurisdiction.”
“Such threats, even when not acted upon, may also constitute an offense against the administration of justice under Art. 70 of the Rome Statute,” the statement continues. “The office insists that all attempts to impede, intimidate, or improperly influence its officials cease immediately.”
The statement comes days after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he “expects the leaders of the free world to stand firmly against” any ICC arrest warrants for officials in Israel’s government.
“We expect them to use all the means at their disposal to stop this dangerous move,” said Netanyahu.
The U.S. celebrates the charges against Putin, but pressures the ICC to refrain from prosecuting Israelis and Americans. By Marjorie Cohn ,Truthout March 25, 2023
The New York Times reported over the weekend that Israeli officials “increasingly believe” that the ICC, which is based in The Hague, is preparing arrest warrants for top members of the country’s government, including Netanyahu. The ICC is also believed to be weighing arrest warrants for Hamas leaders.
“If the court proceeds, the Israeli officials could potentially be accused of preventing the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip and pursuing an excessively harsh response to the Hamas-led October 7 attacks on Israel,” the Times reported.
Bipartisan members of the U.S. Congress who have supported Israel’s devastating assault on Gaza have joined Netanyahu in condemning the ICC in recent days, pushing the Biden administration to fight any arrest warrants even though — like Israel — the U.S. is not a state party to the statute that created the court. Palestine joined the ICC in 2015.
“If unchallenged by the Biden administration, the ICC could create and assume unprecedented power to issue arrest warrants against American political leaders, American diplomats, and American military personnel,” House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said in a statement earlier this week.
On Wednesday, according toAxios, a bipartisan group of senators held a virtual meeting with senior ICC officials to voice “their concern about possible arrest warrants being issued for Israeli leaders over the war in Gaza.”
“If this is true, it should never have happened,” said Mark Kersten, an assistant professor focusing on human rights law, international criminal law, and Canadian law at the University of the Fraser Valley. “The U.S. is not a member-state of the ICC, and the court should not be holding meetings or accepting calls from the senators of a non-member state trying to undermine the institution’s independence and interfere with its work.”
Axios noted that Republican lawmakers have “threatened to pass legislation against the ICC if it moves forward with the arrest warrants, which the Biden administration has said it opposes.”
The Israeli government, for its part, has reportedly told the Biden administration that it would retaliate against the Palestinian Authority if the ICC issues arrest warrants for Israeli leaders.
The Biden White House has publicly spoken out against the ICC’s probe of Israeli war crimes in the occupied Palestinian territories, an investigation that began in 2021.
The U.S. stance has been slammed as hypocritical given the Biden administration’s vocal support for the ICC’s decision last year to issue an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin over war crimes committed in Ukraine. Neither Russia nor Ukraine are parties to the Rome Statute, which established the ICC.
In an op-ed for The Guardian earlier this week, former Human Rights Watch executive director Kenneth Roth wrote that while “the Israeli government is not about to surrender Netanyahu or his deputies for trial,” their “travel would suddenly be limited” if the ICC moves ahead with arrest warrants.
“Although the U.S. never joined the court, European governments have, meaning that suddenly Europe and much of the rest of the world would be out of bounds for those charged without risking arrest,” Roth observed. “It would also make it more difficult for Washington and London to pretend that their ongoing arming of the Israeli military is not contributing to war crimes.”
“In addition, an initial round of charges would be an implicit threat of more,” he continued. “As Netanyahu contemplates a potential invasion of Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah despite 1.4 million Palestinians sheltering there, he must worry about whether more civilian deaths would spur Khan to intensify investigation of Israel’s apparently indiscriminate and disproportionate attacks on civilians. The ICC thus may live up to its potential not only to provide retrospective justice, but also to deter future war crimes.”
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Biden Uses Fascist Rhetoric While Condemning “Lawless” Student Protests
“Order must prevail,” Biden said in a veiled threat against the wave of pro-Palestine protests.
By Sharon Zhang , Truthout May 2, 2024
https://truthout.org/articles/biden-uses-fascist-rhetoric-while-condemning-lawless-student-protests/
President Joe Biden speaks about the protests over Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza that have occurred at US college campuses, in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on May 2, 2024. Drew Angerer / AFP via Getty Images
In a move straight out of the fascist playbook, President Joe Biden delivered a speech on Thursday morning attacking the wave of pro-Palestine protests that have sprung up in college campuses across the country, smearing students for using tactics that have been employed by nearly every social movement in U.S. history to demand an end to Israel’s U.S.-backed genocide of Gaza.
In his remarks, Biden falsely claimed — without citing a single instance of pro-Palestine demonstrators instigating violence — that the pro-Palestine protests have been violent and threatened the safety of their communities. He then condemned the supposed “lawless[ness]” of the protests, purposefully neglecting to acknowledge the U.S.’s role in Israel’s repeated violations of international law.
The speech was, in essence, a veiled threat against protesters who have opposed Biden’s policies toward Gaza — both those who have set up encampments on university campuses and those who have used increasingly disruptive tactics for demands like a permanent ceasefire and institutional divestment from Israel in the face of repressive tactics and police violence.
“We are not an authoritarian nation where we silence people or squash dissent. The American people are heard. In fact, peaceful protest is in the best tradition of how Americans respond to consequential issues,” said Biden. “But neither are we a lawless country. We are a civil society, and order must prevail.”
“Dissent is essential to democracy,” Biden went on. “But dissent must never lead to disorder or to denying the rights of others so students can finish the semester and their college education.”
The rhetoric of “lawless” protests, with demands that “order must prevail” and dissent must fall within predetermined limits, echoes the fascist rhetoric that world leaders have historically used to crush resistance from the public.
In 2020, when Donald Trump called for “law and order” in response to the Movement for Black Lives uprising, many scholars, experts and political commentators noted that Trump was issuing an open call for authoritarian violence against protesters, whether from law enforcement or bloodthirsty right-wing vigilantes.
A particularly potent 2021 essay by Yale University philosophy professor Jason Stanley, who wrote a book entitled How Fascism Works, documented how Trump kicked off fascism’s “legal phase” while following precedents of historical repressors of anti-war and civil rights protests who also called for “law and order” in order to reign in “lawless” protests — specifically ones opposed to the American imperialist regime.
As commentators have pointed out, Biden’s speech equates violence and civil disobedience in an attempt to taint the view of the demonstrations at large — rhetoric that lawmakers have historically applied to smear protests, including the illegal marches, sit-ins and bus boycotts of the civil rights movement led by figures like Martin Luther King, Jr.
“Peaceful protest in America — violent protest is not protected, peaceful protest is. It’s against the law when violence occurs. Destroying property is not a peaceful protest. It’s against the law,” said Biden, using a shifting definition of violence in order to blur the lines between violence against people and destruction of property.
“Vandalism, trespassing, breaking windows, shutting down campuses, forcing the cancellation of classes and graduations — none of this is a peaceful protest,” he went on. (University administrators are the ones who have decided to cancel classes or graduation due to protests; this has not been a primary demand of any of the major encampments.)
Disruptive protests are the crux of successful social movements. This often means that protesters may break the law in order to exert pressure and interrupt business as usual — including laws that have been passed in the U.S. that explicitly outlaw certain forms of protest. Notably, U.S. politicians often condemn state suppression of protest in other countries while using those same tactics on protesters at home.
Data has demonstrated that Biden is wrong in implying that the protesters have been instigating violence; in fact, research released Thursday demonstrates that the violence that has occurred at protests has largely been inflicted not by protesters, but by the highly militarized police forces sent by university administrators to crush dissent.
According to a research brief by the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED), 99 percent of the student protests that have occurred in April have been peaceful — the exceptions being instances like the pro-Palestine protest at the University of California, Los Angeles, where Zionist counterprotesters and police unleashed a spate of violence this week, hospitalizing dozens of demonstrators.
Meanwhile, likely in part due to rhetoric by Biden and other lawmakers painting pro-Palestine protests as dangerous, ACLED found that police intervened on pro-Palestine protests at a rate over four times higher than they did pro-Israel protests last month.
What Biden hasn’t called out as unlawful, on the other hand, is Israel’s genocidal assault against Palestinians in Gaza — despite the many legal scholars, world leaders, humanitarian groups and advocacy organizations who have said that the assault flouts international law, and that U.S. support of it violates domestic policies. The siege has killed over 35,000 Palestinians so far and threatens the lives of hundreds of thousands more.
“Order must prevail,” Biden said in a veiled threat against the wave of pro-Palestine protests.
By Sharon Zhang , Truthout May 2, 2024
https://truthout.org/articles/biden-uses-fascist-rhetoric-while-condemning-lawless-student-protests/
President Joe Biden speaks about the protests over Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza that have occurred at US college campuses, in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on May 2, 2024. Drew Angerer / AFP via Getty Images
In a move straight out of the fascist playbook, President Joe Biden delivered a speech on Thursday morning attacking the wave of pro-Palestine protests that have sprung up in college campuses across the country, smearing students for using tactics that have been employed by nearly every social movement in U.S. history to demand an end to Israel’s U.S.-backed genocide of Gaza.
In his remarks, Biden falsely claimed — without citing a single instance of pro-Palestine demonstrators instigating violence — that the pro-Palestine protests have been violent and threatened the safety of their communities. He then condemned the supposed “lawless[ness]” of the protests, purposefully neglecting to acknowledge the U.S.’s role in Israel’s repeated violations of international law.
The speech was, in essence, a veiled threat against protesters who have opposed Biden’s policies toward Gaza — both those who have set up encampments on university campuses and those who have used increasingly disruptive tactics for demands like a permanent ceasefire and institutional divestment from Israel in the face of repressive tactics and police violence.
“We are not an authoritarian nation where we silence people or squash dissent. The American people are heard. In fact, peaceful protest is in the best tradition of how Americans respond to consequential issues,” said Biden. “But neither are we a lawless country. We are a civil society, and order must prevail.”
“Dissent is essential to democracy,” Biden went on. “But dissent must never lead to disorder or to denying the rights of others so students can finish the semester and their college education.”
The rhetoric of “lawless” protests, with demands that “order must prevail” and dissent must fall within predetermined limits, echoes the fascist rhetoric that world leaders have historically used to crush resistance from the public.
In 2020, when Donald Trump called for “law and order” in response to the Movement for Black Lives uprising, many scholars, experts and political commentators noted that Trump was issuing an open call for authoritarian violence against protesters, whether from law enforcement or bloodthirsty right-wing vigilantes.
A particularly potent 2021 essay by Yale University philosophy professor Jason Stanley, who wrote a book entitled How Fascism Works, documented how Trump kicked off fascism’s “legal phase” while following precedents of historical repressors of anti-war and civil rights protests who also called for “law and order” in order to reign in “lawless” protests — specifically ones opposed to the American imperialist regime.
As commentators have pointed out, Biden’s speech equates violence and civil disobedience in an attempt to taint the view of the demonstrations at large — rhetoric that lawmakers have historically applied to smear protests, including the illegal marches, sit-ins and bus boycotts of the civil rights movement led by figures like Martin Luther King, Jr.
“Peaceful protest in America — violent protest is not protected, peaceful protest is. It’s against the law when violence occurs. Destroying property is not a peaceful protest. It’s against the law,” said Biden, using a shifting definition of violence in order to blur the lines between violence against people and destruction of property.
“Vandalism, trespassing, breaking windows, shutting down campuses, forcing the cancellation of classes and graduations — none of this is a peaceful protest,” he went on. (University administrators are the ones who have decided to cancel classes or graduation due to protests; this has not been a primary demand of any of the major encampments.)
Disruptive protests are the crux of successful social movements. This often means that protesters may break the law in order to exert pressure and interrupt business as usual — including laws that have been passed in the U.S. that explicitly outlaw certain forms of protest. Notably, U.S. politicians often condemn state suppression of protest in other countries while using those same tactics on protesters at home.
Data has demonstrated that Biden is wrong in implying that the protesters have been instigating violence; in fact, research released Thursday demonstrates that the violence that has occurred at protests has largely been inflicted not by protesters, but by the highly militarized police forces sent by university administrators to crush dissent.
According to a research brief by the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED), 99 percent of the student protests that have occurred in April have been peaceful — the exceptions being instances like the pro-Palestine protest at the University of California, Los Angeles, where Zionist counterprotesters and police unleashed a spate of violence this week, hospitalizing dozens of demonstrators.
Meanwhile, likely in part due to rhetoric by Biden and other lawmakers painting pro-Palestine protests as dangerous, ACLED found that police intervened on pro-Palestine protests at a rate over four times higher than they did pro-Israel protests last month.
What Biden hasn’t called out as unlawful, on the other hand, is Israel’s genocidal assault against Palestinians in Gaza — despite the many legal scholars, world leaders, humanitarian groups and advocacy organizations who have said that the assault flouts international law, and that U.S. support of it violates domestic policies. The siege has killed over 35,000 Palestinians so far and threatens the lives of hundreds of thousands more.
Iran slams US for cracking down on pro-Palestine student protests
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani has condemned US authorities for violently suppressing the protests of pro-Palestinian students across the country.
He wrote on X: “The move of the US government authorities to distort the truth and describe genuine student and academic anger and protests as anti-Semitism, in order to justify and use of violent suppression tools to silence the peaceful protests and gatherings of pro-Palestine students, does not diminish the ugliness of their actions.”
“A significant number of Jewish people, including Jewish students, have declared their disgust with the hateful crimes of the Zionist regime and the US government’s shameful support for the regime,” Kanaani said.
He added that the “mask of hypocrisy” has been removed “from the faces of the false defenders of freedom of speech and human rights”.
https://www.aljazeera.com/
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani has condemned US authorities for violently suppressing the protests of pro-Palestinian students across the country.
He wrote on X: “The move of the US government authorities to distort the truth and describe genuine student and academic anger and protests as anti-Semitism, in order to justify and use of violent suppression tools to silence the peaceful protests and gatherings of pro-Palestine students, does not diminish the ugliness of their actions.”
“A significant number of Jewish people, including Jewish students, have declared their disgust with the hateful crimes of the Zionist regime and the US government’s shameful support for the regime,” Kanaani said.
He added that the “mask of hypocrisy” has been removed “from the faces of the false defenders of freedom of speech and human rights”.
https://www.aljazeera.com/
‘Extremist settlers undermining security and stability,’ UK’s Cameron says
British Foreign Secretary David Cameron says Israel’s “extremist settlers are undermining security and stability and threatening prospects for peace” in Palestine.
His statement came after the UK announced the new sanctions that we reported on earlier against several groups and individuals behind the violence against Palestinians in the region.
“This latest package of sanctions targets two groups leading these attacks and four individuals who are directly responsible for egregious violence against Palestinian civilians,” Cameron said.
The four individuals named by the UK government included Noam Federman, a “radical settler activist”, and Neria Ben Pazi, who is said to be responsible for “illegally constructing three illegal outposts”, according to a UK government statement
Federman’s son Ely Federman was among four people the UK sanctioned in February.
Also named was Eden Levi, who the ministry accused of taking part in “assaults and intimidation of Palestinians as part of a wider intimidation campaign to drive their population out of the area”.
The fourth individual was Elisha Yered, accused of “inciting religious hatred and violence”.
The two groups named were Hilltop Youth and Lehava, which the EU has also placed on its blacklist.
https://www.aljazeera.com/
British Foreign Secretary David Cameron says Israel’s “extremist settlers are undermining security and stability and threatening prospects for peace” in Palestine.
His statement came after the UK announced the new sanctions that we reported on earlier against several groups and individuals behind the violence against Palestinians in the region.
“This latest package of sanctions targets two groups leading these attacks and four individuals who are directly responsible for egregious violence against Palestinian civilians,” Cameron said.
The four individuals named by the UK government included Noam Federman, a “radical settler activist”, and Neria Ben Pazi, who is said to be responsible for “illegally constructing three illegal outposts”, according to a UK government statement
Federman’s son Ely Federman was among four people the UK sanctioned in February.
Also named was Eden Levi, who the ministry accused of taking part in “assaults and intimidation of Palestinians as part of a wider intimidation campaign to drive their population out of the area”.
The fourth individual was Elisha Yered, accused of “inciting religious hatred and violence”.
The two groups named were Hilltop Youth and Lehava, which the EU has also placed on its blacklist.
https://www.aljazeera.com/
Settlers who are supported by Israel government who are supported by US government.
Hilltop Youth (Hebrew: נוער הגבעות, No'ar HaGva'ot) are hardline, extremist[1] religious-nationalist youth who establish outposts without an Israeli legal basis in the West Bank.[2] The ideology of the Hilltop Youth, a derivation of Kahanism, includes the claim that the Palestinians are "raping the Holy Land", and must be expelled.[3] According to Ami Pedahzur, their work in establishing illegal outposts was not simply the result of individual initiatives, this was "a myth cultivated by the Yesha Council",[4] and, in fact, forms part of a wider multi-faceted settler strategy. The term "hilltop youth" is regarded by Daniel Byman as a misnomer, since the movement was founded mostly by married people in their mid-twenties.[3]
Origins
On 16 November 1998, in what was viewed as a declaration intended to thwart peace talks, and in particular the implementation of his political rival Benjamin Netanyahu's Wye River agreement with the Palestinian National Authority,[5] the then-Israeli Defense Minister Ariel Sharon urged settler youth to "grab the hilltops", adding,
"Everyone that's there should move, should run, should grab more hills, expand the territory. Everything that's grabbed will be in our hands. Everything we don't grab will be in their hands."[6][7]
People proceeded to heed his exhortation and outposts proliferated, in a practice often called "creating facts on the ground",[8] but many would later feel betrayed by Sharon when the Israeli West Bank barrier he devised in 2005 cut off many of the illegal communities from the expanded Israel Sharon envisaged at that time.[5]
The example of figures like Netanel Ozeri, who moved his family out of the safety of Kiryat Arba's perimeters to build an outpost, Hilltop 26, on nearby Palestinian land, was also important: Ozeri was later shot dead by Palestinian gunmen.[7][9]
Influences
According to terrorism expert Ami Pedahzur, ideologically, Hilltop Youth espouse a Kahanist worldview, favouring "deportation, revenge, and annihilation of Gentiles that posed a threat to the people of Israel".[4]
The youth are influenced by religious Zionist ideals, which include a dedication to building and farming the land, as well as devoting time to learning Torah.[10] Many have studied in the Od Yosef Chai yeshiva under Rabbi Yitzchak Ginsburgh,[11] who developed the metaphor comparing Israel to a "nut" which had to be cracked in order to allow the fruit, the people, out.[11][3] In addition to basing their ideals on the teachings of prominent rabbis such as Avraham Yitzchak Kook and Rabbi Shmuel Tal,[11] some regard Avri Ran as a spiritual leader, or "father", of the movement,[3][12] though he does not see himself as such. The philosophy of some in the movement is expressed by a mixture of distrust of the Israeli government and a desire to re-establish the Ancient Kingdom of Israel.[13]
About the groups
Hilltop youth harassing Palestinian shepherd near Beka'ot
The Hilltop Youth are a "loosely organized, anarchy-minded group", of some several hundred youths around a hard core of scores of violent activists often noted for establishing illegal/disputed outposts outside existing settlements.[11][14] According to Danny Rubinstein they are formed into private militias.[15] Their numbers (2009) are estimated to be around 800, with approximately 5,000 others who share their ideological outlook.[3] They completely dissociate themselves from Israeli institutions, and identify themselves with the Land of Israel.[11] They settle on hilltops in areas densely crowded by Palestinians.[3]
Wounded sheperd from hilltop youth attack
Members linked to the group have been accused of engaging in Israeli settler violence, including vandalism of Palestinian schools[16] and mosques,[17] the rustling of sheep from Palestinian flocks and the extirpation of their centuries-old olive groves, or stealing their olive harvests.[3][18][19] This last practice was endorsed by Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu on a visit to a hilltop outpost, Havat Gilad, where he issued a rabbinical ruling that, "The ground on which the trees are planted is the inheritance of the Jewish people, and the fruit of the plantings was seeded by the goyim in land that is not theirs."[20] They seize land not by any official method: they claim a hilltop by setting up an encampment, and then claim the land nearby, whether under Palestinian cultivation or not, or by uprooting Palestinian trees and shooting in the air if any Palestinian comes near to the new outpost.[21]
Settlers have long been accused of carrying out what are called "price tag attacks", a term used for targeting Palestinian property in revenge for outposts demolished by the Israeli military, although no one as yet has actually been convicted of having been involved in such vandalism.[11][22]
Many of the Hilltop Youth feel that the mainstream settler movement has lost its way, opting for cheap housing close to major cities, built by local Arab labor, with tall fences and no space between their homes. The Youth often engage in organic farming[23] and shun Palestinian labor in favor of Hebrew labor. 2.5% of eggs consumed in Israel are calculated to be produced on the outposts run by the Hilltop Youth leader Avri Ran.[24][25]
The Hilltop Youth has been condemned in the past by figures within Israel's government, with Former Defense Minister Ehud Barak referring to the group as unacceptable "homemade terror, Jewish-made terror".[22]
WIKI