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Israel’s militarism in the West Bank: ‘The worst part is not behind us’
Israel has used its genocidal war on Gaza to execute similar policies – though not at the same scale yet – in the occupied West Bank. There’s been a military deployment of a size not seen since the early 2000s. Clearly, the Israelis are up to no good in the West Bank.
We’ve seen the expansion of settlements, the theft of land and the military incursions into Palestinian cities. The killing in the West Bank is now happening on a huge scale, perhaps unprecedented, and it seems it’s going to continue. The worst part is not behind us. The fanatics in the Netanyahu government are threatening that after Gaza, the West Bank is next.
When it comes to Israel’s allies, there is no accountability. We must continue to demand justice and the end of American hypocrisy, but we must also recognize that this is – and long has been – part and parcel of American-Western foreign policy.
Israeli settlers, troops attack Palestinians near Bethlehem
Israeli forces have attacked Palestinian houses in the area of Khalayel al-Louz, southeast of the occupied West Bank city of Bethlehem, Wafa reports, quoting local sources.
Resident Mahmoud Sweis told the news agency a group of Israeli settlers, with military support, grazed their sheep on Palestinian land, which spurred landowners to try to stop them. Israeli soldiers fired volleys of live ammunition and tear gas canisters towards the Palestinians.
Sweis said the settlers attacked several houses in the area, intimidating residents, including women and children.
Settler violence against Palestinians has surged since Israel’s war on Gaza began in October.
