Former Israeli prime minister accuses government of backing settler violence Submitted by MEE staff on Fri, 01/02/2026 - 14:40 Ehud Olmert says 'Jewish terrorists', who are waging a 'violent, murderous war' against West Bank Palestinians, are backed by Israeli officials, the police and the army Former Israeli Prime minister Ehud Olmert takes part in an 'Is Peace in Gaza possible?' roundtable during the La Toja Forum in Galicia, Spain, on 4 October 2025 (Miguel Riopa/AFP) Off Israel 's former prime minister has accused the Israeli government of actively enabling "murderous" settler violence in the occupied West Bank, days after Benjamin Netanyahu appeared to downplay the surge in attacks amid growing US scrutiny. In an article published in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz on Friday, Ehud Olmert said that violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians wasn't just the work of fringe extremists but a coordinated campaign enabled by politicians, police and military authorities. "There's no other way of defining what's happening in the territories except as a violent, murderous war," Olmert said, adding that attacks against Palestinians were "designed to lead gradually to ethnic cleansing and mass expulsion". Settler attacks have risen sharply since Israel launched its genocidal war on Gaza, with the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs recording more than 260 settler attacks in October - the highest monthly total since monitoring began in 2006. UN figures also indicate that more than 3,200 Palestinians have been forcibly displaced as a result of settler violence since then. In the article, Olmert - who himself approved illegal settlement expansion between 2006 and 2009 while serving as prime minister - said armed settler groups operated with near-total impunity, often in full view of Israeli security forces. "The fact that in the vast majority of cases the rioters aren't detained is no coincidence," he said. "I would claim - with full responsibility - that this is the government's policy." He pointed to the decision to halt the use of administrative detention against Jewish suspects as a turning point that signalled impunity and emboldened armed groups in the West Bank. 'There's no other way of defining what's happening in the territories except as a violent, murderous war' - Ehud Olmert, former Israeli prime minister Olmert added that this had created a "comprehensive, coordinated and well-financed campaign" of settler violence, supported by political leaders and local authorities. "This isn't the 'hilltop youth' or a small group of delinquents who are violating the rules of proper conduct - it's a military, terrorist, violent militia that murders, torches, beats, shoots, and in a systematic, planned and organised manner destroys everything in the territories that isn't Jewish," he said. "The Jewish terrorists in the territories do not operate in isolation from a very broad swath of supporters, who represent the various arms of the government, the cabinet, the police and the army. "The Israel Police cooperate with the terror in the territories. There's no other way to describe what's happening there but as active, planned and deliberate support by the police for the murderous hooliganism of the Jewish terrorists," he added. Since leaving office, Olmert has himself been accused of overseeing war crimes in Gaza during Israel's 2008–2009 military offensive on the enclave, which resulted in more than 1,400 Palestinians being killed and over 100,000 left homeless. His comments came days after Netanyahu claimed that only "a handful of kids" were responsible for the violence and that his government was addressing the rise in attacks. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Middle East Eye (@middleeasteye) "When they're talking about it, they're talking about a handful of kids," Netanyahu said, referring to media coverage of the violence. "We actually located it. It's about 70 kids. They're not from the West Bank. They're actually… teenagers who come from broken homes, and they do things like chopping olive trees, and sometimes they try to burn a home." Internal strife In the article, Olmert also warned that Israel was heading towards internal political strife and accused senior far-right ministers of preparing the conditions for a political assassination. He said recent remarks by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich about Supreme Court President Isaac Amit echoed the rhetoric that preceded the 1995 murder of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. Smotrich poses next to 'Death to Arabs' graffiti in illegal West Bank settlement Read More » Speaking to members of his Religious Zionism party, Smotrich described Amit as "violent and ruthless" and accused him of "stealing Israeli democracy," adding: "The result will be that we'll run him over." Smotrich's aides later claimed the phrase was metaphorical, but Olmert dismissed that explanation. Olmert wrote that what Smotrich said "is what any reasonable person understood… it is an invitation to murder, to physical elimination". He argued that Smotrich, alongside National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, were engaged in a sustained campaign of incitement against Israel's legal system, targeting judges, prosecutors and legal advisers who have resisted the government’s judicial overhaul agenda. Their aim, Olmert said, was not merely to weaken institutional checks but to intimidate and ultimately neutralise them. "These threats are not rhetorical excess," Olmert said. "They are part of a systematic effort to eliminate the law enforcement system." Occupation 'Murderous war': Former PM accuses Israeli government of backing settler violence News Post Date Override 0 Update Date Mon, 05/04/2020 - 21:19 Update Date Override 0