Israeli president condemns settler rampage in phone call with Mahmoud Abbas

Israel’s President Isaac Herzog condemned the recent terror attacks committed by settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank in a phone call with President Mahmoud Abbas. 

President Herzog emphasised in their conversation the “importance of a forceful, persistent war against terror, incitement and hatred and he underscored the horrendous price and pain which terror inflicts upon bereaved families and Israeli society as a whole.”

Herzog also stressed his “unequivocal denouncement of the recent assault on innocent Palestinians by extremists.”

Hundreds of settlers committed dozens of terror attacks against innocent Palestinians last week in the span of five days, in revenge for two Hamas members killing four Israelis in a terror attack near the settlement of Eli.

Settlers, some armed, burned cars, homes, and fields belonging to Palestinians across the northern West Bank. The IDF admitted its failure in preventing the revenge rampage, denouncing it as “nationalistic terror.”

Defence Minister Yoav Gallant also condemned the attacks in a phone call with Palestinian Minister of Civil Affairs in the Palestinian Authority, Hussein Al-Sheik, who is considered Abbas’ no.2.

Gallant said the defence establishment views the recent violence against Palestinian civilians with “great concern” and emphasised that Israel will “take action to bring the perpetrators to justice.”

However, a number of far-right ministers and coalition lawmakers have refused to condemn the attacks, instead lashing out at the IDF, Police and Shin Bet for describing them as “terror.”

According to KAN Public Broadcaster, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir accused the defence echelon of blowing the attacks out of proportion.

KAN quoted Ben-Gvir calling the settlers behind the attacks “sweet kids” while lashing out at Gallant for “apologising to a terrorist”, referring to his phone call with Hussein Al-Sheik.

“A convicted terrorist who sat for 10 years in jail and we are calling to soothe him,” Ben-Gvir reportedly said during the security meeting with Gallant, Prime Minister Netanyahu, IDF chief Herzi Halevi and Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar.

The Jewish terror attacks have been widely condemned by Israel’s closest allies, including the U.S. which said it was extremely concerned about the situation.