A Developing Danger

"Radical Settlers Take on Israel," A14, Friday, 9/26/08
By Isabel Kershner

This fairly informative article describes the developing struggle between the State of Israel and the increasingly confrontational and radical-wing of the settler movement in the West Bank. This radical-wing can be characterized not only by its fanatical connection to the land, but its willingness to resort to violence not only against Palestinians but also against the the state when it behaves in a manner contradictory to their interests (the Gaza Disengagement, removing settler outposts).

This article shows that these extremist settlers are coming more and more to believe that the state is wholly inimical to its messianic mission and must confront it in one way or another. In the eyes of the so-called 'hilltop youth,' the settler movement and greater Israeli public "have to decide whether they are on the side of the Torah or the state."

These are troubling developments and the Israeli government must punish these extremist settlers for wrong-doing such as vigilante violence or the establishment of illegal outposts.

It is essential to note, however, that these "hard-core right-wing settlers" are not representative of the settlement movement as a whole. The author hints at this, mentioning that these radical settlers "reject what they see as the more compromising policies of the Yesha council, the settler movement’s longstanding umbrella group." Nevertheless, Kershner could do more to develop a clearer distinction between the radicalized hill-top youth and the more pragmatic elements of the settler movement.

Without this sort of distinction, the uneducated reader could come to the rash conclusion that the settlers are an evil body that must be extirpated for the sake of peace with the Palestinians and the democratic and generally secular nature of Israel. This would be an erroneous assumption. The reality is much more complicated.

Overall though, a worthwhile read that like many New York Times articles on Israel, is lacking in some necessary context.