Americans for Peace Now urges the Biden administration to react with concrete steps to the Israeli government’s plan to double the size of the West Bank settlement of Eli and to the government’s failure to prevent settlers’ pogroms against Palestinians.  

Yesterday, two Palestinian terrorists shot dead four Israelis and injured four others near the West Bank settlement of Eli. The gunmen were killed by the IDF. APN strongly condemned the attack.

Hours after the attack, hundreds of armed settlers descended on some dozen Palestinian villages in the vicinity of Eli, torched homes, vehicles and fields, vandalized property, and attacked Palestinians. A Palestinian man was shot dead by an Israeli police officer in the village of Turmus Ayya following settlers’ violent attack.

According to eyewitness reports and video clips, IDF troops were present at or nearby the sites of these pogroms, and did nothing. According to press reports, none of the perpetrators has been arrested. As happened time after time in such circumstances, Israel’s occupation authorities in the West Bank fail to prevent, deter or punish settler violence.  

While the settlers were on their violent rampage, Prime Minister Netanyahu, together with Defense Minister Galant and Finance Minister Smotrich announced that they had agreed to react to the terrorist attack at Eli by building 1,000 more housing units, more than doubling its size.

This chaos is unfolding as Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf is visiting Israel and the West Bank, meeting with Israeli and Palestinian leaders.

APN’s President and CEO Hadar Susskind said: “The actions of Israel’s government and settlers violate US policies and positions, as well as Israeli commitments to Washington and obligations under international law. The Biden administration has repeatedly, publicly, and vehemently condemned West Bank settlement activity as well as settler violence. Time has come for the administration to shift from words to actions to demonstrate its staunch opposition to settlement activity and settler violence.”