Following the murder of a settler from Yitzhar on Tuesday, dozens of Israeli settlers from the region attacked several Palestinian villages. They threw stones at Palestinians, at cars and buses, smashed windows and burned houses. These videos, taken by B'Tselem photographers from the villages Asira al-Qibliya and Urif, show how IDF forces allow the riots against the Palestinian farmers to take place. In several cases the soldiers talk to the rioters or try to shove them away. In others, they simply provide escorts for them as they throw stones or storm the villages. Video from Asira al-Qibliya: Video from Urif: Video from Asira al-Qibliya (An officer…

An attempt to kill a family in its sleep would force almost any police force to make an extra effort in catching the perpetrators. Not when the police are Israeli and the victims Palestinian. By Yesh Din, written by Yossi Gurvitz Late one night in May 2012, H., a resident of the West Bank village Einbus, was awakened when he heard a noise outside his house. He went towards the window, heard dogs barking and then smelled smoke. He ran to the balcony where he noticed two things: first and foremost, his car was on fire; second, three or four…

Israeli soldiers are the ones who make the prolonged dispossession of the Palestinians possible. If the army wasn’t there, violent settler attacks could not take place. By Yesh Din, written by Yossi Gurvitz One morning in late February of this year, J., a resident of a village in the Nablus district, went to work in his field along with his two cousins, M. and A. (We are not using the complainants's full names for the same reason members of the Shin Bet are only known by a single name: the fear, perfectly justified in this case, that by exposing complainants’…

With the active and passive support of the IDF, Shin Bet and police, the terrorists have already won by continuing their attacks with impunity. By Yesh Din, written by Yossi Gurvitz Yesterday morning a "price tag" pogrom took place in the Palestinian village of Yasouf. If the name Yasouf is vaguely familiar to you, it’s probably because in 2009 it became the target of the most famous price tag attack: the burning of its mosque. It's worth mentioning the response of the Shomron local settler council at the time (Hebrew): it called the attack an "act of madmen or a…

Two pictures I found in my social media today. The first was taken on Agripas street in Jerusalem. The second was taken near the Al-Aqsa mosque, also in Jerusalem.

The internally displaced community of Bir'em found abusive graffiti, stars of David and the word 'revenge' sprayed on its church, graveyard and other buildings. Yet the act of vandalism is but one of the community's problems, as it continues its struggle for return. Last week, several days after they celebrated Christmas, the former residents of Bir'em discovered the graffiti, as well as flammable liquid that had been poured at the entrance of the Church of Our Lady in the village, which has been mostly demolished. As reported in Haaretz, the Committee for the Uprooted of Kafar Bir'em filed an official…

Despite the onslaught of discriminatory legislation and racist declarations by public leaders, empirical data suggests that the government of Israel is closing the gaps between its Jewish and Arab citizens in many fields. The refusal to recognize those changes is dangerous and counter-productive. By Ron Gerlitz and Batya Kallus The policies of the current government and Knesset in relation to Arab citizens include statements that are divisive, discriminatory and dangerous. The provocations against the Arab leadership and members of Knesset are ongoing, and are strengthened by extremist elements of the government. However, all of the harsh declarations and actions by government ministers have not…

Another "price tag" hate crime was carried out today against the Franciscan monastery on Mount Zion in Jerusalem. The monastery was spray painted with slogans against Christianity and Jesus. Names of Jewish outposts in the West Bank were also sprayed, indicating that settlement supporters carried out the attack. This is the latest hate crime in a series of attacks on Christian holy sites in Jerusalem. The last took place only a month ago, when the door of the Latrun Monastery was set on fire. In February 2012, Dr. Marc Gopin and I wrote about the attack on the Baptist church in…

Recent violent attacks on Palestinians by Jewish extremists highlight the deficient law enforcement and weak penalties imposed on perpetrators of similar past attacks Two recent incidents have brought attention to the issue of attacks on Palestinian civilians by Jewish extremists. On Thursday, a firebomb was thrown at a Palestinian taxi in the West Bank, injuring six people, one of them seriously. Later the same day, three Palestinian youth were assaulted in a “lynch” committed by dozens of Jewish youth in West Jerusalem, while hundreds stood by without intervening. Both incidents have sparked widespread condemnation; and the firebomb attack has been…

Israeli activists went to the Palestinian village to replace the vandalism committed by settlers with a message of nonviolence and solidarity - and were subsequently arrested for damaging property.  While tens of thousands of people were demonstrating last night (Saturday) in Tel Aviv for the mandatory military enlistment of all Israeli citizens, four other citizens were sitting in jail after being arrested for painting over hate speech graffitied on a rock by settlers in Susya and proceeding to write "Stop the Violence" and "Free Susya" next to it. The charge: damage to property. The four were brought Sunday morning before a Jerusalem…

In what seems like another "price tag" attack against Palestinian civilians, unknown perpetrators torched a mosque in the village of Jeba, west of Ramallah. Graffiti in support of the Ulpana neighborhood in the settlement of Beit-El, set to be evacuated by the end of the month, was sprayed on the mosques outside wall. Settler leaders are in the midst of negotiating an agreement with the government, in which they will receive hundreds of housing units deep inside the West Bank in compensation for the Supreme Court ruling that ordered the land in the Ulpana Hill be returned to its Palestinian…

Prime Minister Netanyahu is directing the 'price tag' method at NGOs and the judicial system, stating that his government will act against those trying to enforce what little rights the Palestinians have. In the last couple of years, we've witnessed a series of pogroms by settlers or their supporters, directed either at the IDF or, more often, Palestinians. These attacks, which received the common moniker of "price tags", were orchestrated by several settler leaders, and the concept behind them was that each time the government tried to dislodge a settlement or an outpost, someone else would suffer. Generally, the settler turned…

Eyewitness report that a Palestinian who tried to put out a fire started by settlers in Urif was shot and injured.  Throughout the day, there were reports of settlers from Yitzhar trying to set fire to Palestinian olive groves near the village of Urif, south of Nablus in the West Bank. The entire area is know for its frequent confrontations between settlers and local farmers. A team from B'Tselem who arrived at the spot caught one of the attacks on camera; Sarit Michaeli, spokesperson for B'Tselem who filmed the video, told me she had a very clear view of the…