Why Israel has not reined in violent settlers in the West Bank

In their videotaped rampages, the violent young Jewish settlers attacking Palestinians in the West Bank are typically seen clad in religious ritual garments worn over their shirts, their faces hidden by balaclavas or scarves.

Recently, as they have become more emboldened, they are also seen wearing army fatigues, their faces uncovered, and armed not only with their usual weaponry of stones and large sticks, but with guns.

Violence – in the form of physical beatings; setting fire to homes, mosques, vehicles and property; and uprooting trees – is a tool they employ in their campaign to terrify and exhaust the Palestinians. Their goal is to force them to abandon their homes, farms, groves and factories, particularly those in the West Bank’s so-called Area C, which contains both Jewish and P