Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich says the Israeli military should âÂÂgo to warâ in the occupied West Bank and repeat what it âÂÂdid in GazaâÂÂ.
Using a biblical term for the occupied West Bank, the minister told Ynet News in an interview published on Sunday that Israel needs to âÂÂgo to war in Judea and Samaria, to do there what we did in Gaza, to dismantle the Palestinian Authority, which is a terror authorityâÂÂ.
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Smotrich was responding to a question on how Israel should combat the increasing âÂÂsecurity tensionsâ in the occupied West Bank, where Israeli violence against Palestinians has been steadily growing since the eruption of IsraelâÂÂs genocidal war on Gaza in October 2023, but the attacks have intensified significantly this year.
âÂÂWe need to tellâ Israeli forces, he said, âÂÂJust as you dismantled Hamas in Gaza, there wonâÂÂt be terror infrastructure in Judea and SamariaâÂÂ. âÂÂNo terrorists, no weapons, no tunnels.âÂÂ
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) recorded more than 1,330 settler-related attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank from January to late July, averaging six a day, the highest rate in about 20 years.
Various settler groups, often supported or protected by Israeli soldiers, have attacked Palestinians in several ways, including shootings, besieging homes and engaging in other forms of communal violence that experts have described as âÂÂpogromsâÂÂ.
Rights groups warn that settlers are increasingly armed with military-issued weaponryÃÂ and wear military uniforms during attacks, blurring the line between settler and soldier.
Military closure
The comments come as Israeli authorities announced a comprehensive military closure across the occupied West Bank, citing the Jewish holiday of Sukkot. The heightened restrictions on the movement of Palestinians are set to remain in place until October 3.
Meanwhile, in occupied East Jerusalem, hundreds of Israelis stormed the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque under heavy protection from Israeli police on Sunday.
Palestinian news agency Wafa reported that the Israelis entered the compound through the Moroccan Gate and performed Talmudic rituals, as Israeli forces increased restrictions around the mosque and across JerusalemâÂÂs Old City.