Last update - 00:00 12/12/2006
Group accuses state, police of violating settlers' human rights
By Nadav Shragai, Haaretz Correspondent
In a report published on Monday to coincide with Human Rights week, a group calling itself "Human Rights in Yesha" maintains that "the settler public" suffers "blatant violations of its human rights."
The group, based in Kiryat Arba and headed by Orit Struck, charges in its report that the settlers receive nearly no backing from human rights organizations operating in Israel.
The authors of the report describe six areas in which "the violation of the human rights of the settler public in Yesha [the territories] goes beyond what is reasonable and acceptable in the State of Israel."
The report also focuses on two main events.
The first is the "the expulsion of settlers from Gaza and northern Samaria," as part of the unilateral disengagement in 2005, and a series of laws legislated in parallel with the pullout from the evacuation of the settlers.
The report writes that until the passing of those laws, "the expulsion of human beings from their home was considered a war crime and a crime against humanity."
The second event is the evacuation of the illegal outpost of Amona, earlier this year, in which the security forces clashed with settler youth.
'Organized and planned violence'
The authors of the report charge the police with exercising "organized and planned violence," and list a series of acts, such as the breaking of windows, beating passive protesters, crowding the protesters along a corridor of officers that beat them, charging protesters with mounted officers, attacking the injured, those offering first aid, MKs and public figures, etc.
Drawing a parallel with Palestinians being held in administrative detention on orders of the security services, the authors of the report complain that "more than 20 settlers were evicted from their homes," also on orders by the Shin Bet.
However, they point out that unlike the Palestinian Arabs who were termed "terrorists" by the authorities, and who are not Israeli citizens, the settlers in question are full-fledged citizens whose rights are being violated.