ISRAELI SETTLERS ACCUSED OF ARSON IN WEST BANK
▶ GCC foreign ministers call on US to act against anti-Palestinian remarks as tensions rise
The Palestinian Foreign Ministry yesterday accused Israeli settlers of carrying out an arson attack on a home in the occupied West Bank.
No one was injured in the fire in Sinjel, north-east of Ramallah, but a resident told Reuters he saw settlers travelling through the area in cars minutes before the blaze began.
The ministry blamed the fire on “terrorist elements”, but Israeli police said it was probably caused by a short circuit.
Palestinian-Israeli tensions have remained high since Ramadan began on Thursday.
Two Israeli soldiers were shot on Saturday in the West Bank town of Huwara and troops have carried out regular raids in the Palestinian territory.
Israel’s actions have drawn criticism from regional powers and the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation yesterday condemned plans to allow resettlements in the north of the West Bank and authorise new settlement in occupied territories.
The UAE rejects all moves that breach “resolutions on international legitimacy and threaten to further exacerbate escalation and instability in the region”, the ministry said.
Saturday’s shooting has been claimed by the Popular Front for Liberation of Palestine and marks the third attack against Israeli troops stationed near Huwara in a month.
Last month, settlers rampaged through the town, with the violence causing the death of one Palestinian and damaging dozens of properties.
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich later called for the town to be “erased”.
Foreign ministers from the Gulf Co-operation Council yesterday sent a letter to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken condemning Mr Smotrich’s comments and urging Washington to act against anti-Palestinian remarks.
Mr Smotrich also sparked anger after claiming “there is no such thing as Palestinians” and displaying a flag showing an Israeli state that included the West Bank and Jordan.
Israel’s Defence Minister Yoav Gallant has called on the government to halt legislation on changes to the judiciary, saying the bitter dispute over the measures posed a danger to national security.
Although other members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s governing coalition have voiced misgivings about the judicial shake-up, Mr Gallant is the first senior cabinet member to publicly object. “The deepening split is seeping into the military and security agencies – this is a clear, immediate and real danger to Israel’s security. I will not facilitate this,” Mr Gallant said on Saturday.
“Legislation at this time must be stopped.”
At least two fellow Likud party politicians, Yuli Edelstein and David Bitan, came out in support of Mr Gallant. They echoed his call for justice reforms, but only with broad agreement.
It was unclear whether Mr Netanyahu, wrapping up a visit to London and aiming to finalise legislation on at least one bill in the coming week, would heed their call.
Mr Netanyahu – on trial for corruption – is under pressure from others in his cabinet who want him to proceed this week with a bill that would grant the ruling coalition more sway in selecting judges. Critics say that that would undermine judicial independence.
Highlighting tensions in Mr Netanyahu’s cabinet, farright National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir urged Mr Netanyahu to fire Mr Gallant, who he said had caved to opposition pressure.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid praised Mr Gallant’s “brave step” and said he was ready for talks once the government stopped the legislation.
But with 64 seats in the 120-member Knesset, the coalition would have enough votes to pass legislation without Mr Gallant, unless others withdraw their support.
The judicial overhaul plan, announced on January 4, has plunged Israel into its worst political crisis in years, as mass protests sweep the country. It has also stirred concern abroad and warnings about a serious economic backlash.
Mr Gallant has voiced worries about a wave of Israelis who have pledged not to heed call-ups for military reserve duty if the reforms proceed, saying this could weaken the country’s war readiness and national cohesion.
Despite Mr Netanyahu’s pledge this week to enshrine civil rights in law and defer some chapters of the overhaul during parliament’s April recess, the opposition has not weakened.
Israeli media said about 200,000 Israelis rallied against the plan in Tel Aviv on Saturday, along with tens of thousands more across the country.
“We are here fighting for our democracy,” protester Hila Bron, 41, told Reuters. Yesterday, two organisations, the Movement for Quality Government, which strongly opposes Mr Netanyahu’s judicial reform plans, and the Israel Medical Association, condemned the Prime Minister.
The MQG said he was breaking the law, having failed to abide by a conflict of interest agreement that was supposed to prevent him from interfering in key judicial appointments.
Zion Hagay, the head of the Israel Medical Association, also said that Mr Netanyahu must halt the reform plans and that he could “no longer remain silent” about the issue.
The government says the reforms, which would hand more control to politicians and diminish the role of the Supreme Court, are necessary to rebalance powers between elected legislators and the judiciary.
But protester Daphne Oren-Magidor, 41, said the overhaul risked Israel “turning into a dictatorship”.
“The laws that are being passed right now are laws that are aimed to make the government essentially the sole ruler and destroy the separation of powers,” the historian told AFP at a rally in Jerusalem.
The planned changes have also been questioned by Israel’s top allies, including the US.
The judicial overhaul plan has plunged Israel into its worst political crisis in years, as mass protests sweep the country