Congress Must Respond to Settler Violence
The remnants of a car torched by settlers in the West Bank town of Huwara.
New Jewish Narrative calls on House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast to immediately hold a markup of the West Bank Violence Prevention Act (H.R. 3045) amid a wave of unprecedented settler violence targeting Palestinians. The legislation, led by Representatives Jerrold Nadler, Adam Smith, and Jim Himes, has now earned the support of more than 100 members of Congress.
As the olive harvest draws to a close, violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians has reached historic highs. October saw a record-breaking 264 documented attacks, resulting in widespread injury, destruction of homes and crops, and the displacement of families across the West Bank. These attacks have become systematic, carried out in broad daylight and too often with total impunity.
The West Bank Violence Prevention Act would codify President Biden’s now-repealed executive order that held violent extremists accountable. That order had empowered the US to target both Israeli and Palestinian perpetrators of violence by freezing assets, restricting travel, and signaling that accountability transcends political identity.
NJN commends Representatives Nadler, Smith, and Himes for their leadership in pushing this bill forward and urges Chairman Mast to give it a fair consideration. Each day Congress fails to act, the situation on the ground deteriorates further, deepening instability and jeopardizing the prospects for a peaceful future for Israelis and Palestinians alike.
“Settlers are acting with impunity, terrorizing Palestinian communities and threatening both Palestinian lives and Israel’s own security,” said Hadar Susskind, President and CEO of New Jewish Narrative. “Congress cannot look away. The United States must hold violent actors accountable and make clear that extremist violence will not go unchecked.”
Photo by Osama Eid, CC BY-SA 3.0
