Barak weighs compensating Palestinians for damage caused by settlers
During weekly cabinet meeting, defense minister says law breakers should be punished with severity.
By Barak Ravid and Haaretz Correspondent Tags: Ehud Barak Hebron Israel news Israel settlersDefense Minister Ehud Barak said Sunday that he had instructed his office to consider compensating Palestinians in the West Bank city of Hebron for property damage caused by rampaging settlers.
During the weekly cabinet meeting, Barak said "the recent disturbances in the West Bank are an attempt by a small extreme group to undermine the authority of the state to enforce the law within its boundaries."
"Law breakers should be punished with severity," he went on to say, criticizing the judicial system for doling out light punishments to violent extremists.
He cited the case of Rabbi Israel Ariel, who was convicted of assaulting major general Elazar Stern, but got a mere two-month suspended sentence. "This is only one example of countless rulings that point to a trend of leniency toward law breakers. This damages our ability to deter potential offenders and prevents us from eradicating the phenomenon," Barak said.
The defense minister stressed that the Israel Defense Forces has recently begun implementing a tough stance against rioters, which includes detaining violators until the police arrives to make an arrest.
"The defense establishment has cracked down on illegal outposts," Barak continued, adding that "over the last two years, no new outposts have been established. Three were evacuated and attempts to set up new ones were quickly foiled, like the Shvut Ami outpost, which was dismantled 20 times amid struggles against the settlers," the defense minister said.
He added that the illegal outpost Migron "is currently in the process of being voluntarily evacuated, a process that should be completed within two years, after which the community will be moved to a different location."
Also during the weekly cabinet meeting, Barak said that in efforts to prevent settlers from invading private Palestinian land, 10 evacuation injunctions, including the one issued for the "House of Contention" in Hebron. "The most efficient method of handling the problem is transmitting an uncompromising message on the behalf of the state to its citizens. This phenomenon is not gone, but this proves that determination and force achieve results with law breakers," Barak explained.
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