Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu broke his silence on Saturday about the ongoing wave of extremist settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank, but downplayed it as the act of a “handful of rioters,” stressing it didn’t represent the broader settler public.
He issued the remarks after dozens of settlers attacked the West Bank village of Qusra and took over a Palestinian home while the family was inside. The military was called to clear the settlers from the home, but as of late Saturday night, no arrests appeared to have been made, and Palestinians reported being targeted with tear gas by the Israel Defense Forces.
Violence also broke out elsewhere in the West Bank on Saturday, including in Jalud where settlers were filmed attacking journalists.
In his statement, Netanyahu said the individuals who took over the home were a “handful of rioters” who are “causing a huge injustice to the law-abiding settler public, hindering the IDF in fulfilling its missions, and harming Israel’s standing in the world.”
“Security forces are working quickly, seized three vehicles, and brought an end to the incident within a short time,” Netanyahu claimed. He did not address the fact that no one was arrested.
