Law Enforcement on Israeli Civilians in the Occupied Territories

B. Non Intervention by Soldiers during Settler Violence

On January 8, 1992, Khabath Othman al ‘Abd al Barghouti and ‘Abd Samarin, a priest, went to Civil Administration headquarters at Halamish to complain about rioting by settlers in the village of Abud the night before. An officer, Lt. Eran Yariv, advised them to go to the police. When they complained that the army did not protect the local Arabs, the commander asked: "Do you control the masked individuals?" And when al Barghouti replied that he did not, the officer retorted, "And we don’t control the settlers.” Testimony of Khabath Othman al ‘Abd al Barghouti, taken by B’Tselem fieldworker Bassem ‘Eid, January 8, 1992.

Soldiers who are present during settler violence rarely intervene. The many eyewitness testimonies culled by B'Tselem and other human rights groups show that non-intervention is the rule rather than the exception.

Ramallah, October, 1993

On October 29, 1993, dozens of settlers entered the a Tharbiyeh wa Tha’alim neighborhood in Ramallah and threw stones at houses, ignited cars, and shattered windows. The following testimony, by a neighborhood resident, was taken by B'Tselem fieldworker Bassem ‘Eid on November 1, 1993:

Testimony by ‘Abd al Qadr al Kanash

From the window of my house I saw dozens of settlers throwing stones at houses. My sister screamed that my brother’s car was on fire. I could not call the firemen because I do not have a telephone. And I could not leave the house for fear of being hit by stones. I glanced out of the window and saw a military vehicle of a GMC type moving slowly along the road. The settlers’activity went on for about an hour-and-a-quarter. After the settlers left, a large army force arrived. My sister and I went outside to extinguish the car-fire. Soldiers asked us in Arabic if we had seen who burned the car. I told them that they themselves had seen who did it. They didn’t answer, but rather only advised us to file a complaint with the police.

One of the most serious phenomena is vandalism committed by settlers while Palestinians are under an IDF curfew. As testimonies gathered by B'Tselem and other human rights groups show, the settlers move about unimpeded in areas under curfew, shatter windows, slash tires, and throw stones at houses. Soldiers neither try to stop them nor ask for identification.

Hebron, June July 1992

Following the stabbing of Hillel Horowitz, a Hebron resident, on June 26, 1992, dozens of Jews went on the rampage in the Hebron open air fruit and vegetable market. They smashed car windows, slashed tires, and caused other property damage. Some residents were beaten by settlers. Residents’ testimonies given to B'Tselem researcher Yuval Ginbar on July 7, 1992, indicates that the settlers took advantage of the IDF curfew on Hebron to break into the market, overturn stands, and loot merchandise and money. Arab residents said soldiers had been present during the rioting but had made no attempt to stop it.

Testimony by ‘Abd al Hamid Muhammad al Juneidi, seller in the market

On Saturday, June 27, 1992, at about 11:30 a.m., we saw about twenty settlers beating people in the market, overturning crates of merchandise, and shooting in the air. After about five minutes, soldiers arrived and declared a curfew. We left the money and the goods where they were, and everyone shut down quickly. On Tuesday, when the curfew was lifted for two hours, we came back and found the door of the warehouse smashed. The merchandise was spilled on the ground and the safe had been opened. Invoices, receipts, and about NIS 10,000 in cash were missing from the safe.

Testimony by ‘Abd al Fatah ‘Abd al Qadr a Da’is, seller in the market

On Saturday, June 27, 1992, the army imposed curfew on the city. I closed my shop and went home. On Tuesday, when the curfew was lifted at 9 a.m., I went to the shop, where d I saw that the lock on the back door was broken. Some of the merchandise had been taken and some destroyed, about NIS 8,000 shekels were stolen, and bills and documents from suppliers were also taken.

The settlers returned three more times that Sabbath. Not until late in the day did more soldiers arrive and put a stop to the looting and vandalism in the market. However, the army made no arrests.

On June 29, 1992, Yediot Aharonot reported that the police suspected that members of Kach had organized the rampage. On July 22, 1992, Davar, Ha’aretz, and Ma’ariv reported that Baruch Marzel, a Kach activist, had been taken from his home for interrogation and released on personal bond. On April 25, 1993, Superintendent Yoni Tsioni of the police Investigations Department, in reply to a query by B'Tselem, stated that the case had been closed by the State Attorney’s Office due to insufficient evidence.

If the soldiers had arrested any of the ramping settlers, or had insisted, at least, that they identify themselves, the case would likely not have been closed due to insufficient evidence, and those guilty would have been brought to trial.

A few days later, on July 1, 1992, settlers again ran wild in Hebron. They stoned houses and cars, entered shops, and dumped merchandise on the floor. Shop owners said money was also taken. An investigation by Yuval Ginbar of B'Tselem found that the shops in question were fifteen meters from an IDF guard position. That night, settlers shot at balconies of houses, broke windows, and beat Arabs. According to local residents, the army did not intervene.

^1Twelve years before these events, the Karp Commission warned about similar incidents in which cases had been closed due to non-intervention by soldiers: "Various testimonies indicate that despite the curfew, civilians from Kiryat Arba wandered about in the city, some of them carrying arms and in uniform. In a number of cases they were seen throwing stones and damaging property.” It was also found that soldiers who had witnessed a couple from Kiryat Arba maliciously damage property did not stop them, did not arrest them, and did not ask them to identify themselves. Epilogue: According to a report by Inspector Steinmitz from November 25, 1980, all the files under police investigation in the case were closed due to: offender unknown.