This article, published in The Guardian is the logical followup to my last post The Apostolic Manifesto: The Major’s Seal—From a Canadian Jail to Gaza’s Cry
While the eyes of the world are on Gaza, Israeli settlers in the West Bank still behave with impunity
As the harvest season begins, attacks on Palestinian farmers and their land are spiralling. The words of peace following the Gaza ceasefire ring hollow.
Last Monday, when the US president, Donald Trump, addressed the Knesset alongside the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, my compatriot lawmaker Ayman Odeh and I raised a banner calling them to “Recognise Palestine”. We were brutally expelled by force from the parliament’s plenum, revealing the fragile state of the supposed “only democracy in the Middle East”. How can Trump and Netanyahu speak of peace in the Middle East without recognition of the people deprived for decades of their basic liberties and rights under vicious occupation?
Nowhere is the deceit more clear than in the occupied West Bank. There, the words of peace are but a weak and distant voice, but the horrifying sounds of settler violence and terror still echo loudly. More than 30 occurrences of settler violence against Palestinians have been documented since the announcement of Trump’s 20-point plan at the end of September, including physical assaults, theft of agricultural produce and torching of vehicles and property.
The rise of settler terrorism is not coincidental. This period marks the start of the harvest seasons. More than a vital economic event, it is an important social and national moment that exhibits endurance under occupation. Precisely for these reasons, year after year settlers target Palestinians during this precious time. During the 2024 harvest period, Yesh Din (an Israeli human rights group that collects and disseminates information regarding violations of Palestinians’ human rights in the West Bank) documented 113 separate incidents of violence, harassment, harvest-thwarting or damage to olive trees and crops involving Israeli civilians and soldiers, which took place on lands belonging to 51 Palestinian villages, towns and communities.
Yesh Din also found that “Israeli security forces appeared to have played a greater role in obstructing the olive harvest”. In about 70% of forceful prevention of access to lands, soldiers, border police officers and settlement civilian security coordinators (CSCs) were actually present. They either personally prevented Palestinians from accessing and harvesting in their own lands, or failed to stop settlers who harassed or assaulted them.
This comes as no surprise, as the leader of the settlers’ political party, Bezalel Smotrich, was appointed as an additional minister in the Ministry of Defence in charge of the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT). In Umm al-Khair, for example, a special COGAT unit uprooted private olive trees of Palestinians, citing lack of permits, but ignored violations of an illegal nearby settler outpost. Last week, the Jerusalem district court ruled to halt all building work in the outpost, which was built on lands seized by Israel and unlawfully transferred to settlers.
In the occupied West Bank, settler terrorism is nothing but a tool by the government to pursue de-facto annexation. Earlier this month, Smotrich led a march of thousands of settlers in support of annexation of the West Bank. He was quoted as saying, “We are continuing to take hold with our feet of the Land of Israel with many pioneers, many heroes, and hundreds of thousands of settlers who live in this part of the land … we need to normalise it and make it eternal.”
The settlers and their supporters in the Knesset are clear on their motives and intentions. Why, then, do political leaders in the west refrain from meaningful sanctions and diplomatic measures? Smotrich was sanctioned by the UK in June, but the effect of the sanction has been minimal. He may not be able to travel to the UK and tour the West End, but he still enjoys the ministerial power to grab lands in the West Bank. Even in the announcement of sanctions, the UK highlighted they take place “in his personal capacity” solely.
If the UK government acknowledges the reality of settler violence and its grave implications on Palestinian life, why does it still allow settlement produce to be sold in markets and shops in Britain? If Starmer is serious about recognition of Palestine as a state, how come it allows the Israeli government to violate its sovereignty with such violent means? Or was the recognition an empty ploy to shut down dissenting voices in the UK, a hollow act only to be realised in the rebranding of some maps?
A just peace must respect the fundamental rights of the Palestinian people for self-recognition, sovereignty and liberty from military occupation and siege. Only when every human being’s dignity between the river and sea is respected can we truly say peace has been achieved.
True peace requires an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel: this is the sole formula that enjoys consensus among the international community, the Palestinian national movement and the Israeli peace camp.
Trump may have inflicted pressure on Netanyahu to halt the genocide, but he probably only did so because the burden of his relationship with the pariah regime of Netanyahu had become too great. The mass protests across the globe for the liberation of Palestine, and the unwavering anti-government demonstrations inside Israel, are the real forces behind this pressure.
It is thanks to this enormous civil movement that a ceasefire has been signed, the hostages released and the people of Gaza can enjoy safeguard from annihilation. After the ceasefire agreement has been signed, it is vital to keep applying this pressure. The world has turned a blind eye to the atrocities in Gaza for too long; it must not repeat the same mistake in the West Bank.
- Dr Ofer Cassif is a member of the Knesset, representing the Democratic Front for Peace and Equality (Hadash) since 2019
Israel kills 11 Palestinian family members in Gaza’s deadliest truce breach
Dear Ray,
Let us illustrate the Israeli settlements in West Bank with numbers and maps as follows:
Yours sincerely,
SoundEagle🦅
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Bunk. The 1964 PLO Charter did not refer to Jordan’s illegal annexation of Israel’s Samaria/west bank by your propaganda word “occupied territory”.
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Truth! The world knew in 1967 Israel sending it’s Citizens to OCCUPY the West Bank captured in WAR was ILLEGAL
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Bunk. The UN in 1950 condemned Jordan’s annexation of Samaria as “illegal”. Jordan renamed it “West Bank”. Your revisionist history stinks.
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You’re the one behind the Times! Now you go back to 1950. What I wrote about is happening with Israeli TERRORISTS Today!
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Your declaration says nothing. Its not my place to do your research for you. The UN General Assembly Resolution 194 condemned Jordan’s illegal annexation of the West Bank in 1950. Your revisionist history compares to the stink of Holocaust Denial!
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Why are you stuck in the Past? These days the UN condemns Israel’s illegal occupation and illegal settlements. But for the US VETO in Israel’s service at the UN, those many UN condemnation of the Israeli de facto annexation of the West Bank would have passed.
Seeing most Nations on Earth now see the Israeli Genocide in Gaza wouldn’t be happening without 100% US complicity Trump is lying when he says the US is more respected than ever under him. Such a delusion! The opposite is happening and when the US wakes up, there will be no more VETOs in service to Israel. Secular religious Israelis don’t see they’re reaping the curses described in Deuteronomy 28.
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Those charts should be in the article below “Dr Ofer Cassif is a member of the Knesset, representing the Democratic Front for Peace and Equality (Hadash) since 2019!”
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SoundEagle, I’m sure most People cannot imagine the concept. All of The Gaza Strip is no bigger than the Island of Montreal, greater Philadelphia.
The dead women, children and most Palestinians couldn’t defend themselves against the Terrorist State of Israel, using US jet fighters, US bombers, bombs, bullets, US Apache Attack helicopters, tanks, artillery and BULLdozers.
The US led International Community, is 100% complicit with the Genocide!
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And thank you, SoundEagle for adding the charts.
For some reason my original comment I was typing just disappeared!
This is the reality: All of The Gaza Strip is no bigger than the Island of Montreal, greater Philadelphia or Detroit.
In 1 place not bigger than a big City, Israel dropped more destructive power on Gaza than the 2 Nukes the US dropped on Japan.
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Did you notice SoundEagle mosckeer carried this discussion over to your article Towards a Refreshed Blog with Revamped Interface making this long extreme Zionist comment: Only the Chosen Cohen People accepted the revelation of the Torah at Sinai.
This false Av tuma avoda zara verse, 2 Corinthians 8:9, emphasizes the themes of grace, sacrificial love, and generosity, particularly within the context of Xtian avoda zarah theology. Torah defines faith as the righteous pursuit of fair restitution of damages inflicted by one upon another through Sanhedrin common law judicial courtrooms. JeZeus a foreign alien false prophet. The NT does not understand that all Torah prophesy commands mussar. The Xtian viewpoint Av tumah avoda zarah worship of other Gods. A direct violation of the 2nd Sinai commandment.
The humility of Moshe Rabbeinu, his silence when confronted by emotional mobs. The revelation of the Torah at Sinai specifically excludes both Esau and Yishmael who both categorically reject the revelation of the Torah at Sinai. Proof. No where in the Xtian NT or Muslim Koran – the Hebrew Name of HaShem. The revelation of this Divine Name – a Spirit and NOT some disgusting word translation, like as expressed through the sin of the Golden Calf.
The Xtian NT falsely interprets prophesy as predictions of future events. Hence the NT books of Av tuma avoda zarah declare that JeZeus fulfilled the words of the prophets! This mirrors the witchcraft of the prophet Bil’aam, who likewise prophesied future events. Witchcraft foretells the future. Torah prophets command mussar to the generations of the chosen Cohen people.
In Judaism, avoda zarah refers to the worship of foreign gods, explicitly forbidden in the Torah second Sinai commandment. The concept of faith in Torah centers itself around mussar (dedication of tohor Oral Torah middot to change future social interactions a man has with his people) and justice, particularly in the context of restitution through judicial common law/legislative review mandate systems like the Sanhedrin. The God of Israel a tribal God NOT some Xtian or Muslim Universal God. Only the chosen Cohen people accepted HaShem as our God at Sinai.
The revelation of the Torah at Sinai fundamentally and categorically rejects the strict monotheism preached by the false prophet Mohammad. Why? Monotheism directly violates the 2nd Sinai commandments. Hence the theology of some Universal One God Monotheism = a Torah abomination of the first order. Both the NT and Koran failed to grasp that Israel, through the holiness of doing tohor time-oriented Torah commandments, creates Angels from the holiness of these time-oriented Torah commandments. The av tumah avoda zarah of both Xtianity and Islam knows absolutely nothing about tohor time-oriented commandments dedicated to HaShem similar to a sacrifice dedicated upon the altar on Zion Jerusalem. A fundamental distinction between their foreign false Gods and the revelation of the Torah at Sinai.
Torah faith rejects the Goyim idea that through theology that man can create God – as both Xtianity and Islam preach. Both religions of avoda zarah never call to the Name of HaShem nor validate the chosen Cohen people as the only people who accept the Torah at Sinai. Covenant, a false corrupt translation of brit. The latter requires swearing a Torah oath which absolutely requires שם ומלכות. The NT and Koran fail to create Angles through שם ומלכות time-oriented commandments, dedicated to establish the yoke of the kingdom of Heaven upon these oath created Angels – sent as messengers of Israel in times of peace and war.
This is my reply: mosckeer, the Chosen People of the Torah are dead and gone. God is ckoosing People who are alive Today who can do good in this World and they’re not necessarily Israelis in this Common Era of Christ.
My reply: mosckeer,
mosckeer, the Chosen People of the Torah are dead and gone. God is ckoosing People who are alive Today who can do good in this World and they’re not necessarily Israelis in this Common Era of Christ.
Your reliance on historical minutiae and specialized jargon is a shield against the present-tense reality of injustice. You build a wall of dates and charters to hide the simple, bloody truth: while you debate 1950, Israeli settlers are stealing olive harvests today. While you parse the 1964 PLO charter, families are being shot in their cars today under a so-called “truce.”
This is not a scholarly debate. It is a moral confrontation.
The world is not blind. It sees the stark contrast between your historical lectures and the live-streamed violence of the occupation. No amount of “revisionist history” can revise the image of a dead child.
My calling is not to be trapped in your historical labyrinth. My calling is to stand as a Watchman and report the covenantal crime happening now. Your elaborate arguments are just noise to drown out the screams.
If your cause is so righteous, why does it require burying the present in the past? Why does it fear the simple, prophetic question: Where is the justice for the sojourner today?
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Dear Ray,
I commend you very highly for your impassioned and reasoned reply, which is quoted as follows:
The over-reliance on scriptures, doctrines or dogmas to the exclusion or detriment of concerted, multipronged and evidence-based examinations and apropos solutions is not just all too prevalent; its effects and consequences can be as vexatious, harmful, pernicious, disruptive, iniquitous, reprehensible, deplorable, oppressive, obstructive and destructive.
Many of such folks tend to use numerous quotations (from scriptures or other sources) to make their misleading, misguided, fabricated or fraudulent case, insofar as for many people the use of quote after quote makes a very persuasive argument even though it gives the false impression of having substance and validity. Such a use of quotations often is a fallacy of argument from authority, selective quotation may be occurring, the quotations are often out-of-date or anachronistic, the quoted authorities are often not appropriate authorities. For example, evolution or climate change deniers and other pundits, pseudoscientists, obscurantists and tabloid journalists as well as corrupt politicians, religious extremists, uncompromising fundamentalists, far-right factions, staunch war-peddlers, ruthless terrorists, militant invaders, callous soldiers, imperialistic autocrats or power-hungry tyrants, are often not honest in representing who the people whom they quote are, and many of the quotations are misquotations. Here are two of my expansive posts dealing with such issues:
SoundEagle🦅
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SoundEagle, I like your comment but my like doesn’t register pressing the star.
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Dear Ray,
I have encountered no issue regarding liking your comment. Your not being able to like a comment could have been caused by the caching problem on your computer. Simply reload your post and try liking my comment. If this still fails, then you may restart your computer and try liking the comment again.
SoundEagle🦅
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Dear Ray,
In general, if you have left any of your posts or WordPress administrative pages opened for longer than a day or two (and sometimes as short as a few hours), its connection with the WordPress server could have been lost. Therefore, reloading the post or page to re-establish the connection can usually iron out whatever issue(s) that you may have encountered.
SoundEagle🦅
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I can express my like by rating the stars above the comments. That works for me and you!
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Dear Ray,
Using the five-star rating system is not as satisfactory as the gravatar-linked liking system because the commenter will not be notified by email when the former is used. Worse still, the five-star rating system does not keep tap of who the raters are. So, it is much better to like a comment than to rate it with the 5-star system.
In any case, I hope that you are satisfied that I have setup both systems for you.
SoundEagle🦅
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