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Ze'ev Elkin and government for settlers

January 23, 2014 at 7:43 am

Israel’s deputy foreign minister, Ze’ev Elkin, has claimed that settlements ‘have become a fact of life that must be recognised’. In an interview with Associated Press, Elkin, himself a settler in the West Bank, claims that the policy of building settlements is in accordance with the views of the Israeli majority.

While ‘peace’ continues to function as a bargaining commodity, it is clear that within Netanyahu’s government peace exists only within the expanding borders of the occupying state – an internal phenomenon to be achieved at the expense of serious human rights violations against Palestinians.


Elkin describes the representation of settlers in government as a natural occurrence. Far from advocating an end to, or restriction of, settlement construction, Elkin resorts to the tactics of expecting forced acquiescence from Palestinians and the international community. Instead of Israel abiding by international law, the world is expected to ‘get used to dealing with Jewish settlers and right-wing Israeli politicians’.

Israel is rumoured to be losing international support over its policy of settlement expansion, a tactic also openly used as retaliation against Palestinians’ political gains. However, there is no outrage from leaders at the violence which settlers inflict upon Palestinians, despite the knowledge that such violence is routinely practiced and sanctioned by the Israeli government. While the violence may be misrepresented as isolated incidents pertaining to hate crimes, it is clear that Israel is violating international humanitarian law by failing to provide security and safety for the population living under the occupation. The unequal struggle for territorial domination has been endorsed by the state of Israel to the point of providing settlers with impunity for horrendous crimes against Palestinians – criminal accountability is disregarded and at times settlers are protected by the military during their rampage.

It is vital, therefore, to view the ‘fact of life that must be recognised’ as a strategy to further displace Palestinians. Elkin’s statement, coupled with deputy defence minister Danny Dalon’s declaration that Israel is ‘proud of its settlers’, are void of any apologetic ramifications. Settlers constitute an important hierarchy of Israeli society and are necessary in ensuring that the political strategy of expansion in the name of Zionism is actually implemented.

Elkin still expects his self-portrayal of a ‘democrat’ to be accepted by the international community, despite opposing the legitimate Palestinian stipulation to halt settlement construction. Yet again, the ramifications of democracy within a wider context and especially within the Israeli context are elaborated upon – Elkin is ‘willing to accept any decision made by a democratic majority’. The statement would be further elucidated if ‘democratic majority’ had been replaced with ‘demographic majority’.

Palestinians are marginalised from the political processes involving their land, invoked by Israel only when it serves the narrative of ‘protecting the state against terror’. Undoubtedly, Elkin and Netanyahu’s government indulge in attempts to undermine settler violence by accusing Palestinians of ‘glorifying violence’. Protecting settlers by electing them to serve as government representatives while sporadically recognising the existence of Palestinians within contexts that serve the Israeli narrative clearly demonstrates the occupying power’s commitment towards enacting the Zionist myth of the barren land.

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.