Former Israeli prime minister accuses government of backing 'murderous' settler violence 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". Read more: Former Israeli prime minister accuses government of backing 'murderous' settler violence 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)