Current sectionIsrael NewsShare to FacebookShare to XArticle printing is available to subscribers onlyPrint in a simple, ad-free formatSubscribeComments: Zen reading is available to subscribers onlyAd-free and in a comfortable reading formatSubscribeA masked settler in uniform near the village of Ras Ein al-Auja in January, after all its residents fled due to settler violence. Credit: Itai RonIsraeli soldiers who served in the West Bank say settlers in regional defense battalions, despite being formally subordinate to the IDF, have effectively taken control on the ground12:42 PM • August 09 2026 IDTDuring his second tour of reserve duty in the West Bank during the war, G., an officer and startup manager, encountered a recurring problem: youths from a nearby hava, or farm, essentially a small settler outpost, repeatedly entered the homes of Palestinian families in nearby villages.In the NewsWhy Did Israel's Defense Minister Ditch Security Cabinet to Kiss a Rabbi's Ring?The Israeli Bladesmith Who Elevated Kitchen Knife Forging to an Art Form'Lords of the Land': Soldiers Explain How Settlers Call the Shots in West BankPharma Giant Teva Seeks to Hide Israel Ties From Jury in Price-fixing TrialIsrael Elections for Dummies: How to Read the PollsRemembering and rebuilding two years laterICYMIIsrael's Leading Philosopher on Manipulation, Morality and the Future of ZionismHow Israel's Elbit Armed the United Arab EmiratesIsrael Captured 230 Square Miles of Lebanon, Razed Villages and Built New BasesHow a Teen, Not a Journalist, Debunked Israel's Gaza 'Voluntary Emigration' Plan'I Saw Pictures of Dead Kids. In the Army They Told Us We Only Kill Terrorists'Former Mossad Chief Appointed to Lead U.S. Defense Technology Company