Israel's military said yesterday it failed to protect civilians when Jewish settlers launched a deadly attack on a Palestinian village in the occupied West Bank, amid growing international pressure on Israel to crack down on such violence.
Four suspects were arrested in connection with the attack in the village of Jit on August 15, when around 100 settlers went on a rampage, burning cars and houses and killing at least one Palestinian. Additional arrests are planned, the military said.
In a report on the investigation into the incident, the Israeli military stated that troops and police initially failed to manage the situation and should have reacted more decisively. "This is a very serious terrorist incident in which the Israelis deliberately set out to harm the residents of the city of Jit," said Avi Blut, head of the army's Central Command. "It's our fault that we didn't get there sooner and protect them."
The report also states that members of the rapid action force from a nearby settlement, who were not on duty, arrived in uniform and without permission "acted contrary to the powers defined for members of the rapid action team".
Two members of the team were disciplined and their weapons were confiscated.
The attack on Jit was the largest of recent settler incursions in the West Bank, but it is not unique, given that violence against residents of Palestinian villages is increasing as the construction of Jewish settlements continues to expand in the West Bank, Reuters points out.
However, the Jit incident, which coincided with increasing pressure on Israel from Western allies to curb settler violence, drew unusually strong criticism in Israel, including from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Criminal proceedings for settler violence are relatively rare.
On Wednesday, just as the investigation's findings were released, the US imposed sanctions on a security official from a Jewish settlement in the West Bank and Hashomer Yosh, an NGO that claims to help protect settlers.
Bonus video:
