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Ma'ariv: "The Moderate Settlers Are the Problem" by A.B. Yehoshua

"...the moderates among the settlers, law-abiding among themselves, make no serious effort to neutralize these extremist acts."

Sept. 26, 2008

   It is grave, it is terrible and we need to internalize this incident in all its seriousness and responsibility. We all should realize that it was only by a miracle that Professor Zev Sternhell survived. We see all the time that violence on the part of settler fringe groups has gained momentum over the past year while the moderates among the settlers, law-abiding among themselves, make no serious effort to neutralize these extremist acts.

   The problem in this case is not only the legal authorities-which, perhaps, attempt to prevent embarrassing acts of this sort. The problem is more with the relatively moderate settlers who live in the dozens of settlements, who certainly reject such acts, but do not come out particularly strongly against them and do not condemn the extremists in their community.

   We ought to remember that since the state was established, three Jews have been murdered by members of the right wing. I think that this incident shows that things can only get worse as signs of an approaching peace treaty increase. These acts were intended to sabotage any possibility of reaching a peace agreement and the extremists are sending warning signals to anyone who wishes to compromise. The fact that some people are not frightened by those warning signals makes the extremists even more extreme and dangerous. What happened to Professor Sternhell, who is a Holocaust survivor and whose family was killed in the Holocaust, is very dangerous. Sternhell was an officer in an IDF combat unit and is renowned throughout the world for his research on European fascism. He is very familiar with the germs of this disease both as a prominent teacher and a moral, warm-hearted Zionist.

   In order to eradicate such occurrences, we depend mostly upon the unequivocal stand of the Settlers Council and the right-wing parties, which must be more firm in condemning these people who gather beneath the surface, and at the same time provide all possible assistance to the police in order to find them before it is too late.

   The left wing needs to continue to give massive support to the process of dividing the land, which most of the nation supports today. This incident is a warning light that has been lit, and therefore we all must understand the real danger that faces the entire system.