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Dawabsha family, july 31 2015 burned by settlers |
4 aug 2015
A second suspected Jewish extremist was arrested Tuesday in Israel following the firebombing of a Palestinian home that burned a baby alive, the Shin Bet internal security force said.
Israel on Monday arrested Meir Ettinger, whose grandfather Meir Kahane founded the racist anti-Palestinian Kach group, and a court prolonged his detention until the weekend on suspicion of "nationalist crimes".
"A second individual, Eviatar Slonim, was arrested for belonging to an extremist organisation," a Shin Bet spokeswoman told AFP, without providing details on any charges against him.
Israeli television reported that the office of Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein had given permission for authorities to place three suspected Jewish extremists in "administrative detention".
The measure would need the green light from Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon, it added.Media reports said Ettinger could face a year of such detention under the government's harder line against "Jewish terrorists". Israel normally applies the measure, which dates from British-mandated Palestine, against Palestinians, allowing renewable six-month periods of detention without trial.
Currently, 379 of the 5,686 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jail are on administrative detention, according to official figures.
Friday's attack in the occupied West Bank, which killed 18-month-old Ali Saad Dawabsha, sparked an international outcry over Israel's failure to get to grips with violence by hard-line Jewish settlers.
Israel on Monday arrested Meir Ettinger, whose grandfather Meir Kahane founded the racist anti-Palestinian Kach group, and a court prolonged his detention until the weekend on suspicion of "nationalist crimes".
"A second individual, Eviatar Slonim, was arrested for belonging to an extremist organisation," a Shin Bet spokeswoman told AFP, without providing details on any charges against him.
Israeli television reported that the office of Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein had given permission for authorities to place three suspected Jewish extremists in "administrative detention".
The measure would need the green light from Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon, it added.Media reports said Ettinger could face a year of such detention under the government's harder line against "Jewish terrorists". Israel normally applies the measure, which dates from British-mandated Palestine, against Palestinians, allowing renewable six-month periods of detention without trial.
Currently, 379 of the 5,686 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jail are on administrative detention, according to official figures.
Friday's attack in the occupied West Bank, which killed 18-month-old Ali Saad Dawabsha, sparked an international outcry over Israel's failure to get to grips with violence by hard-line Jewish settlers.
The parents of Muhammad Abu Khdeir, a Palestinian teenager who was killed by Jewish extremists last year, on Tuesday visited the mother and brother of 18-month-old Ali Dawabsha, who was burnt to death in an arson attack carried out by Israeli settlers last week.
Abu Khdeir's parents said that on Monday they visited relatives of the Dawabsha family in the West Bank village of Duma where the deadly attack took place, before travelling to Tel HaShomer hospital in Tel Aviv on Tuesday to visit the toddler's mother, Riham, and four-year-old brother, Ahmad.
The two are receiving treatment at in Tel HaShomer hospital in Tel Aviv, while the toddler's father, Saad, is being treated in Soroka Medical Center in the southern Israeli city of Beersheba.
"We first visited Dawabsha family in Duma to offer condolences, and today we visited the family members who have been hospitalized at Tel Hashomer," Abu Khdeir's father told Ma'an. "Our message to them is that they shouldn’t give up hope despite the bitter pain they are suffering these days."
He told Ma’an that the arson attack had brought back difficult memories from him and his wife of their own son's brutal killing last summer.Muhammad Abu Khdeir, 16, was abducted and burnt to death by Jewish extremists on July 2, 2014 in occupied East Jerusalem, sparking mass demonstrations and international outcry.
Last week's attack by Jewish extremists has caused similar outcry.
Ali Saad Dawabsha, only 18 months old, was burnt to death when Israeli settlers firebombed the family's home on Friday last week.Israeli settlers reportedly smashed the windows of two houses in the village before throwing flammable liquids and Molotov cocktails inside them, killing the infant who was trapped inside one of the homes and critically injuring his parents and brother.
On Sunday, Palestinian Minister of Health Jawad Awwad said that the lives of the Riham and Saad al-Dawabsha, as well as their four-year-old son, Ahmad, remained at risk. He said that Riham and Saad had not shown any progress since the attack on their home, although there has been a slight improvement in Ahmad's health.
Awwad said that Saad suffers from third-degree burns covering 80 percent of his body, while his wife Riham suffers third-degree burns across 90 percent of her body. He said that they remain in intensive care.
Abu Khdeir's parents said that on Monday they visited relatives of the Dawabsha family in the West Bank village of Duma where the deadly attack took place, before travelling to Tel HaShomer hospital in Tel Aviv on Tuesday to visit the toddler's mother, Riham, and four-year-old brother, Ahmad.
The two are receiving treatment at in Tel HaShomer hospital in Tel Aviv, while the toddler's father, Saad, is being treated in Soroka Medical Center in the southern Israeli city of Beersheba.
"We first visited Dawabsha family in Duma to offer condolences, and today we visited the family members who have been hospitalized at Tel Hashomer," Abu Khdeir's father told Ma'an. "Our message to them is that they shouldn’t give up hope despite the bitter pain they are suffering these days."
He told Ma’an that the arson attack had brought back difficult memories from him and his wife of their own son's brutal killing last summer.Muhammad Abu Khdeir, 16, was abducted and burnt to death by Jewish extremists on July 2, 2014 in occupied East Jerusalem, sparking mass demonstrations and international outcry.
Last week's attack by Jewish extremists has caused similar outcry.
Ali Saad Dawabsha, only 18 months old, was burnt to death when Israeli settlers firebombed the family's home on Friday last week.Israeli settlers reportedly smashed the windows of two houses in the village before throwing flammable liquids and Molotov cocktails inside them, killing the infant who was trapped inside one of the homes and critically injuring his parents and brother.
On Sunday, Palestinian Minister of Health Jawad Awwad said that the lives of the Riham and Saad al-Dawabsha, as well as their four-year-old son, Ahmad, remained at risk. He said that Riham and Saad had not shown any progress since the attack on their home, although there has been a slight improvement in Ahmad's health.
Awwad said that Saad suffers from third-degree burns covering 80 percent of his body, while his wife Riham suffers third-degree burns across 90 percent of her body. He said that they remain in intensive care.
Hardly a day goes by without a Palestinian being killed by Israelis. Sometimes, they are killed by the occupation army and on other occasions they are killed by extremist Jewish settlers. Palestinians are being killed outside the context of confrontations, throwing stones and shooting bullets.
It is fairly obvious from the behavior of Israeli soldiers that they are entertaining themselves by killing Palestinians. This is evidenced by the fact that some Palestinians are killed in their own homes or on their rooftops even when they have no intention of throwing stones at the soldiers.
Every time a Palestinian is killed, the Israelis find a justification for the soldiers' criminal behavior. They always come up with some idea that allows the criminals to escape accountability.
Last Friday, Jewish settlers committed another crime. They launched an arson attack on the Dawabsheh family in the village of Duma, near Nablus. They burnt 18 month old Ali Dawabsheh alive while his parents suffered very serious injuries. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is paying for their treatment out of his own pocket rather than from the PA treasury, as he pledged to do.
The Palestinians, especially officials, attacked the Israelis over the burning of the child and criticised, condemned and cursed their occupation. They all held the occupation responsible for the crime on the grounds that it is the occupation authorities who arm and protect the settlers and give them the freedom to do as they please in the West Bank.
Reading the statements issued by the various factions, it is easy to imagine that the Israeli occupation authorities are respectful and disciplined, and would not allow such criminal acts to be committed against the Palestinians. All of the statements and comments made by the Palestinian factions and political statements overlook the nature of occupation when it calls on the Israeli government to rein-in the settlers and control their soldiers' bullets.
Occupation by definition is a criminal and degenerate status that contradicts the principles of human rights, the UN Charter, international law and international morals and ethics. The Israeli occupation is hateful and despicable by nature and it works against the people. It subjects the lives, interests and property of the Palestinians to constant danger. The occupation is oppressive and brutal and innovative in finding new ways to control people and keep them fearful. It always works to spread terror in the hearts of those living under it. In the circumstances, holding the occupation responsible for killing people and confiscating their property is considered to be an attempt to avoid the problem.
However, holding the Israeli occupation responsible for its crimes is not only a confirmation of its behavior and definition, but is also useless. Those who are responsible for the occupation's continued brutality include those who live under occupation without resisting it. To such people I would ask, if the Israelis rein-in the settlers, will it be acceptable?
Many lands have been colonised and their people placed under occupation throughout history and the only way that they obtained their freedom was by confronting the occupation, making it hell for the occupiers to stay. Some Palestinians and most Arabs talk about the Israeli occupation's responsibility for its crimes, but they do not talk about the absence of a Palestinian-Arab plan to deter the Zionists and remove the occupation.
An occupying force does not stop its crimes through moral or legal arguments; it stops when it is confronted by a deterrent which makes the occupation too costly to maintain. The Palestinians and Arabs have not developed a long-term plan to confront the Israeli occupation, although many have exhausted themselves trying to please Israel.
The only genuine resistance in the occupied West Bank is on an individual level. There is no deterrent so Israel does not hesitate to commit its many crimes; it knows that there will be no Palestinian reaction, but if there is, it will be tame. Israel knows that the Palestinian arena is angry over the burning to death of the child, but it is also aware that the Palestinians do not have a driving force that will generate momentum for a large scale movement that will push the occupation into a corner. This is due to the deterioration of the national culture in favor of the consumer culture.
In addition, resistance is actually – and perversely - prohibited by the Palestinian Authority. Rebels or those intending to resist are persecuted by the Palestinian security services in accordance with the coordination with Israel. Countless rebels have been arrested and tortured by these security agencies. This security aspect is the primary reason for Israel to be happy to sign agreements with the Palestinians, Egyptians and Jordanians.
Every Arab who wants to be linked with Israel by means of agreements must become a loyal protector of Israel's security. Those who are coordinating in terms of security with Israel and cooperating against Palestinian rebels were the first to condemn the arson attack which killed young Ali Dawabsheh. However, these same individuals will wake up tomorrow morning and continue their security coordination with the occupation. They are not ashamed of lying to the people; many actually enjoy lying to them. The PA hates telling the truth, and there are those who hate hearing the truth and prefer to remain blissfully ignorant.
The issue is not limited to security coordination, but also includes the defence of settlers and providing them with protection. If a Palestinian throws a stone at a settler, the Palestinian security forces will immediately go after the boy who threw the stone and detain him. They won't tackle the rampant settlers.
In the past, the streets of the occupied West Bank were under the control of the Palestinian people, who could walk around the territories and feel safe. The settlers only moved around in vehicles with armed guards. Now, they are spread across the streets in the West Bank because of the PA's obligations to the security of Jewish settlers and Israelis in general.
Those who leave the doors to their homes open are inviting thieves, criminals and thugs to attack them; this is exactly what is happening in the West Bank. The doors have been left wide open and the thugs are infiltrating the area with nothing to stop them. As such, although it was Jewish settlers who burned Ali Dawabsheh to death, we are all responsible for the negligence of Palestinian security and we have given the Israelis the opportunity to disregard us and our capabilities and go on attacking us.
Countries around the world generally resist oppressors and dictators. This is not a fad or a phase, it is a historical fact, but we are departing from it during this black phase in our history. We want to free ourselves through appeasing our enemies and arming ourselves with weakness, weeping and wailing. Our actions will not be our salvation; instead, it will give the Israelis more ammunition with which to attack us.
International law and international decision-making created Israel. It displaced the Palestinian people and continues to do so, expelling them to refugee camps and various corners of the world.
Palestinian officials always say that Israel is violating international law and that it does not adhere to international legitimacy. This is true, and the occupation in itself violates all international, religious, moral and historical laws, conventions and norms. However, there is one sort of legitimacy that Israel holds on to, and it is the most important type of legitimacy in this world which lacks justice; the legitimacy bestowed by force.
The strong trump all and the world's laws, values and moral principles all collapse in the face of brute strength. There are countless examples of this around the world. The ICC ruled that the wall built by Israel is illegal, but what happened? Israel continued to construct the wall and no one stopped it. Now we are turning to the ICC for help; what if the court decides to convict Israel? Which international measures do we expect to be taken against it?
I do not expect anything to be done. The decision to convict Israel will be like all the other decisions that were made on the international level; words on paper but little or no concrete action.
We should not count on the courts or so-called international legitimacy; we must only count on our own hands and efforts. The decision to convict Israel may affect its status in the world and it may contribute to its isolation, but it will not liberate Palestine or allow the refugees to return. The question that we must ask when evaluating any step taken against Israel is how will it change the daily reality of the Palestinians on the ground? If a step or decision is not reflected on the ground, then it will not change the conditions of the Palestinians. This is similar to the governments formed by the Palestinian Authority, despite the fact that they already know these governments do not control or govern anything.
We have strong arguments to make in the international arena, and despite the strength of the truth and the Palestinian and Arab arguments, will still not be able to convince any countries to take measures against Israel. We also have been unable to influence the UN Security Council to make decisions similar to those it makes against the Arabs and Muslims. Why? We choose to bank on our vulnerability.
We have relied heavily on our weakness, thinking that it will generate sympathy and compassion for us, following which the colonial countries will put pressure on Israel by adopting harsh sanctions. Our reliance on our weakness may be a unique case in human history. Historically, we have seen that individuals and nations build up strength in order to face challenges in their various forms, but the Palestinians have preserved their weakness, especially during the years when the PA has been present to solve their problems.
The PA has been very cautious in the process of unifying the Palestinian people and building new strategies to take advantage of the moment and popular strength required to deter the enemy. The authority does not see any way to fulfill Palestinian ambitions other than through the occupation, so it works on maintaining the weakness now witnessed in the West Bank, and even tries to deepen it in order to please Israel and the Western countries supporting it. This is a very strange political theory and it should be documented by the students of political science.
There is a belief within the PA that preventing Palestinian rebels from resisting and confiscating their weapons actually serves the interests of the people. The justification for this is that Israel will be angry if the resistance spreads in the West Bank, and it will retaliate by making the lives of the Palestinians even more difficult by imposing new military checkpoints and curfews, demolishing more homes, preventing Palestinians from traveling, and so on.
But what is better for the Palestinians? Remaining quiet and not resisting or allowing their lives to become a living hell? The answer from the PA is that we must acquiesce in the face of the occupation. In this, the Palestinian Authority is keen on protecting the interests of the people even when it means that the Israeli occupation remains in place. It is clear that the national Palestinian interests have now become completely linked to the survival of the occupation. This is a new political theory that must also be taught at universities.
It is fairly obvious from the behavior of Israeli soldiers that they are entertaining themselves by killing Palestinians. This is evidenced by the fact that some Palestinians are killed in their own homes or on their rooftops even when they have no intention of throwing stones at the soldiers.
Every time a Palestinian is killed, the Israelis find a justification for the soldiers' criminal behavior. They always come up with some idea that allows the criminals to escape accountability.
Last Friday, Jewish settlers committed another crime. They launched an arson attack on the Dawabsheh family in the village of Duma, near Nablus. They burnt 18 month old Ali Dawabsheh alive while his parents suffered very serious injuries. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is paying for their treatment out of his own pocket rather than from the PA treasury, as he pledged to do.
The Palestinians, especially officials, attacked the Israelis over the burning of the child and criticised, condemned and cursed their occupation. They all held the occupation responsible for the crime on the grounds that it is the occupation authorities who arm and protect the settlers and give them the freedom to do as they please in the West Bank.
Reading the statements issued by the various factions, it is easy to imagine that the Israeli occupation authorities are respectful and disciplined, and would not allow such criminal acts to be committed against the Palestinians. All of the statements and comments made by the Palestinian factions and political statements overlook the nature of occupation when it calls on the Israeli government to rein-in the settlers and control their soldiers' bullets.
Occupation by definition is a criminal and degenerate status that contradicts the principles of human rights, the UN Charter, international law and international morals and ethics. The Israeli occupation is hateful and despicable by nature and it works against the people. It subjects the lives, interests and property of the Palestinians to constant danger. The occupation is oppressive and brutal and innovative in finding new ways to control people and keep them fearful. It always works to spread terror in the hearts of those living under it. In the circumstances, holding the occupation responsible for killing people and confiscating their property is considered to be an attempt to avoid the problem.
However, holding the Israeli occupation responsible for its crimes is not only a confirmation of its behavior and definition, but is also useless. Those who are responsible for the occupation's continued brutality include those who live under occupation without resisting it. To such people I would ask, if the Israelis rein-in the settlers, will it be acceptable?
Many lands have been colonised and their people placed under occupation throughout history and the only way that they obtained their freedom was by confronting the occupation, making it hell for the occupiers to stay. Some Palestinians and most Arabs talk about the Israeli occupation's responsibility for its crimes, but they do not talk about the absence of a Palestinian-Arab plan to deter the Zionists and remove the occupation.
An occupying force does not stop its crimes through moral or legal arguments; it stops when it is confronted by a deterrent which makes the occupation too costly to maintain. The Palestinians and Arabs have not developed a long-term plan to confront the Israeli occupation, although many have exhausted themselves trying to please Israel.
The only genuine resistance in the occupied West Bank is on an individual level. There is no deterrent so Israel does not hesitate to commit its many crimes; it knows that there will be no Palestinian reaction, but if there is, it will be tame. Israel knows that the Palestinian arena is angry over the burning to death of the child, but it is also aware that the Palestinians do not have a driving force that will generate momentum for a large scale movement that will push the occupation into a corner. This is due to the deterioration of the national culture in favor of the consumer culture.
In addition, resistance is actually – and perversely - prohibited by the Palestinian Authority. Rebels or those intending to resist are persecuted by the Palestinian security services in accordance with the coordination with Israel. Countless rebels have been arrested and tortured by these security agencies. This security aspect is the primary reason for Israel to be happy to sign agreements with the Palestinians, Egyptians and Jordanians.
Every Arab who wants to be linked with Israel by means of agreements must become a loyal protector of Israel's security. Those who are coordinating in terms of security with Israel and cooperating against Palestinian rebels were the first to condemn the arson attack which killed young Ali Dawabsheh. However, these same individuals will wake up tomorrow morning and continue their security coordination with the occupation. They are not ashamed of lying to the people; many actually enjoy lying to them. The PA hates telling the truth, and there are those who hate hearing the truth and prefer to remain blissfully ignorant.
The issue is not limited to security coordination, but also includes the defence of settlers and providing them with protection. If a Palestinian throws a stone at a settler, the Palestinian security forces will immediately go after the boy who threw the stone and detain him. They won't tackle the rampant settlers.
In the past, the streets of the occupied West Bank were under the control of the Palestinian people, who could walk around the territories and feel safe. The settlers only moved around in vehicles with armed guards. Now, they are spread across the streets in the West Bank because of the PA's obligations to the security of Jewish settlers and Israelis in general.
Those who leave the doors to their homes open are inviting thieves, criminals and thugs to attack them; this is exactly what is happening in the West Bank. The doors have been left wide open and the thugs are infiltrating the area with nothing to stop them. As such, although it was Jewish settlers who burned Ali Dawabsheh to death, we are all responsible for the negligence of Palestinian security and we have given the Israelis the opportunity to disregard us and our capabilities and go on attacking us.
Countries around the world generally resist oppressors and dictators. This is not a fad or a phase, it is a historical fact, but we are departing from it during this black phase in our history. We want to free ourselves through appeasing our enemies and arming ourselves with weakness, weeping and wailing. Our actions will not be our salvation; instead, it will give the Israelis more ammunition with which to attack us.
International law and international decision-making created Israel. It displaced the Palestinian people and continues to do so, expelling them to refugee camps and various corners of the world.
Palestinian officials always say that Israel is violating international law and that it does not adhere to international legitimacy. This is true, and the occupation in itself violates all international, religious, moral and historical laws, conventions and norms. However, there is one sort of legitimacy that Israel holds on to, and it is the most important type of legitimacy in this world which lacks justice; the legitimacy bestowed by force.
The strong trump all and the world's laws, values and moral principles all collapse in the face of brute strength. There are countless examples of this around the world. The ICC ruled that the wall built by Israel is illegal, but what happened? Israel continued to construct the wall and no one stopped it. Now we are turning to the ICC for help; what if the court decides to convict Israel? Which international measures do we expect to be taken against it?
I do not expect anything to be done. The decision to convict Israel will be like all the other decisions that were made on the international level; words on paper but little or no concrete action.
We should not count on the courts or so-called international legitimacy; we must only count on our own hands and efforts. The decision to convict Israel may affect its status in the world and it may contribute to its isolation, but it will not liberate Palestine or allow the refugees to return. The question that we must ask when evaluating any step taken against Israel is how will it change the daily reality of the Palestinians on the ground? If a step or decision is not reflected on the ground, then it will not change the conditions of the Palestinians. This is similar to the governments formed by the Palestinian Authority, despite the fact that they already know these governments do not control or govern anything.
We have strong arguments to make in the international arena, and despite the strength of the truth and the Palestinian and Arab arguments, will still not be able to convince any countries to take measures against Israel. We also have been unable to influence the UN Security Council to make decisions similar to those it makes against the Arabs and Muslims. Why? We choose to bank on our vulnerability.
We have relied heavily on our weakness, thinking that it will generate sympathy and compassion for us, following which the colonial countries will put pressure on Israel by adopting harsh sanctions. Our reliance on our weakness may be a unique case in human history. Historically, we have seen that individuals and nations build up strength in order to face challenges in their various forms, but the Palestinians have preserved their weakness, especially during the years when the PA has been present to solve their problems.
The PA has been very cautious in the process of unifying the Palestinian people and building new strategies to take advantage of the moment and popular strength required to deter the enemy. The authority does not see any way to fulfill Palestinian ambitions other than through the occupation, so it works on maintaining the weakness now witnessed in the West Bank, and even tries to deepen it in order to please Israel and the Western countries supporting it. This is a very strange political theory and it should be documented by the students of political science.
There is a belief within the PA that preventing Palestinian rebels from resisting and confiscating their weapons actually serves the interests of the people. The justification for this is that Israel will be angry if the resistance spreads in the West Bank, and it will retaliate by making the lives of the Palestinians even more difficult by imposing new military checkpoints and curfews, demolishing more homes, preventing Palestinians from traveling, and so on.
But what is better for the Palestinians? Remaining quiet and not resisting or allowing their lives to become a living hell? The answer from the PA is that we must acquiesce in the face of the occupation. In this, the Palestinian Authority is keen on protecting the interests of the people even when it means that the Israeli occupation remains in place. It is clear that the national Palestinian interests have now become completely linked to the survival of the occupation. This is a new political theory that must also be taught at universities.
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Far-right activist Meir Ettinger was arrested by the Shin Bet, which says he developed a plan called 'the revolt', designed to inflame tensions and cause anarchy in order to hasten the end of days.
Meir Ettinger, who was arrested on Monday by the Shin Bet, was accused by the security service of heading a cell planning to commit a series of violent acts against Palestinians as part of a plan he branded "the revolt". Ettinger, considered the Shin Bet's Jewish division's number one target, was arrested at his apartment in Safed. He is the grandson of far-right late US-born rabbi Meir Kahane, who advocated expelling Arabs from Israel and the Palestinian territories. According to his worldview, violence must be committed in order to light the flames of conflict and cause the Israeli government to collapse. Anarchy would follow, and then a new order could be created. "The meaning of bringing down the state is toppling the structure of the state and its ability to rule, and to build a new institution," wrote Ettinger in a document outlining his plan. "To this end, we must work outside of the rules of the institution we want to bring down. "If the 'contractor' sees there is a regime and keeps him from carrying out the mission, and the mission must be carried out, he must think now how |
to topple the regime that's stopping him from building the temple, which is preventing us from attaining full and true salvation," read the document.
"The idea of the revolt is very simple," continued Ettinger. "Israel has many 'weak points', subjects people tiptoe around so as not to cause riots. What we will do is simply 'spark' all these powder kegs, all the questions and the contradictions between Judaism and democracy. Between the Jewish character and the secular character, without fearing the results. Disturbing the ability to rule the country. That's the main part of the revolt's 'vort' (word) to break the rules and the entire status quo."
The document went on: "When you do this, you have to pay attention to the difference between 'breaking' the state, which is an action that doesn't pay enough attention to what is left of the fragments, and 'dismantling', which is the same action, only gentler and particularly careful.
That is, ultimately the goal is disturbing the foundations of the state until the point where the Jews are forced to decide whether they want to take part in the revolution or in suppressing the revolt, because it will not be possible to ignore it or continue to sit and do nothing, because in practice the revolt will not permit the state's existence in the same way."
Ettinger was born in Jerusalem to Mordechai Ettinger, a rabbi at the Har Hamor and Ateret Kohanim yeshivas in Jerusalem, and Tova, the daughter of Rabbi Meir Kahane, the founder of the outlawed Kach movement. He got married in October 2014.
"I've lost the energy for it," Tova Ettinger told Ynet on Monday following her grandson's arrest.
Ettinger embarked on this path six years ago in the outpost of Ramat Magron, which was eventually evacuated, and with time became a well-known figure. He has previously encountered security forces in several incidents, such as when he entered Joseph's Tombin Nablus despite not being approved, and involvement in collecting information on security forces planning to evacuate West Bank outposts, which led to more than six months of detention for Ettinger.
At this point, he met friends from the Od Yosef Chai yeshiva in Yitzhar, and began to be drawn to Hasidic-messianic ideas about hastening salvation through deeds. The president of the yeshiva is Rabbi Yitzchak Ginsburgh, a controversial figure who has been arrested for a series of publications about Arabs, including pamphlets stating that Arabs have no right to live in Israel.
According to the Shin Bet, Ettinger has continued to radicalize since then, and is at the head of a new organization, which was responsible for the arson at the Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fish in June.
Ettinger denied in a blog post that he was the chief of a Jewish terror organization: "To tell you the truth, I don't know what they in the Shin Bet wanted me to organize, and they should definitely look for other people to cast for the roles they need in their show for the media, but this urge of the Shin Bet to create an atmosphere, to put up appearances as if there is some 'organization' it exposed, clearly illustrates to us what those in the Shin Bet understand and are so afraid of," he wrote.
Attorney Yuval Zemer, who represents Ettinger, said he felt the arrest was more a matter of public relations than a true investigation.
IOF arrests five Palestinian students
The Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) arrested Tuesday morning five students of al-Najeh University in Nablus to the north of occupied West Bank.
Local sources told PIC reporter that IOF broke into the city since the early morning hours and arrested five Palestinian youths after violently raiding and searching their parents’ homes.
In Duma town, IOF raided Dawabsheh family’s home that subjected to a settlers’ arson attack last week and checked the crime scene before carrying out a ground investigations with the neighbors.
Surveillance cameras were also confiscated from several buildings in the town.
"The idea of the revolt is very simple," continued Ettinger. "Israel has many 'weak points', subjects people tiptoe around so as not to cause riots. What we will do is simply 'spark' all these powder kegs, all the questions and the contradictions between Judaism and democracy. Between the Jewish character and the secular character, without fearing the results. Disturbing the ability to rule the country. That's the main part of the revolt's 'vort' (word) to break the rules and the entire status quo."
The document went on: "When you do this, you have to pay attention to the difference between 'breaking' the state, which is an action that doesn't pay enough attention to what is left of the fragments, and 'dismantling', which is the same action, only gentler and particularly careful.
That is, ultimately the goal is disturbing the foundations of the state until the point where the Jews are forced to decide whether they want to take part in the revolution or in suppressing the revolt, because it will not be possible to ignore it or continue to sit and do nothing, because in practice the revolt will not permit the state's existence in the same way."
Ettinger was born in Jerusalem to Mordechai Ettinger, a rabbi at the Har Hamor and Ateret Kohanim yeshivas in Jerusalem, and Tova, the daughter of Rabbi Meir Kahane, the founder of the outlawed Kach movement. He got married in October 2014.
"I've lost the energy for it," Tova Ettinger told Ynet on Monday following her grandson's arrest.
Ettinger embarked on this path six years ago in the outpost of Ramat Magron, which was eventually evacuated, and with time became a well-known figure. He has previously encountered security forces in several incidents, such as when he entered Joseph's Tombin Nablus despite not being approved, and involvement in collecting information on security forces planning to evacuate West Bank outposts, which led to more than six months of detention for Ettinger.
At this point, he met friends from the Od Yosef Chai yeshiva in Yitzhar, and began to be drawn to Hasidic-messianic ideas about hastening salvation through deeds. The president of the yeshiva is Rabbi Yitzchak Ginsburgh, a controversial figure who has been arrested for a series of publications about Arabs, including pamphlets stating that Arabs have no right to live in Israel.
According to the Shin Bet, Ettinger has continued to radicalize since then, and is at the head of a new organization, which was responsible for the arson at the Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fish in June.
Ettinger denied in a blog post that he was the chief of a Jewish terror organization: "To tell you the truth, I don't know what they in the Shin Bet wanted me to organize, and they should definitely look for other people to cast for the roles they need in their show for the media, but this urge of the Shin Bet to create an atmosphere, to put up appearances as if there is some 'organization' it exposed, clearly illustrates to us what those in the Shin Bet understand and are so afraid of," he wrote.
Attorney Yuval Zemer, who represents Ettinger, said he felt the arrest was more a matter of public relations than a true investigation.
IOF arrests five Palestinian students
The Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) arrested Tuesday morning five students of al-Najeh University in Nablus to the north of occupied West Bank.
Local sources told PIC reporter that IOF broke into the city since the early morning hours and arrested five Palestinian youths after violently raiding and searching their parents’ homes.
In Duma town, IOF raided Dawabsheh family’s home that subjected to a settlers’ arson attack last week and checked the crime scene before carrying out a ground investigations with the neighbors.
Surveillance cameras were also confiscated from several buildings in the town.
As Israeli investigators release their findings that a right-wing Jewish terrorist network is gaining power throughout Israel and illegal West Bank settlements, an arrest has been made in the arson attack Thursday night that burned a baby to death and severely wounded his mother, father and 4-year old brother.
The alleged arsonist, who smiled and joked as he was taken into custody, is 24-year old Meir Ettinger, the grandson of the late Rabbi Meir Kahane, who was known for his racism and incitement against Arabs, as well as direct involvement in violent racist attacks.
His arrest came five days after the attack, and is the only one so far, despite eyewitness accounts that at least four men were seen running from the village after setting the house on fire with a firebomb and spraypainting it with racist graffiti.
As Meir Ettinger was taken into custody, police investigators told reporters from Ha’aretz newspaper that they suspect the involvement of a right-wing network that is based in Yitzhar settlement, in the northern West Bank, and has planned and carried out dozens of terror attacks against Palestinians.
The group is also suspected of carrying out the arson that burned the Church of the Loaves and Fishes, a holy site for Christians, late last year.
Shin Bet arrests Kahane's grandson, online incitement continues
Far-right activist Meir Ettinger suspected of involvement with extremist Jewish organization; police opens investigation into videos of Netanyahu, Rivlin wearing Nazi uniform.
Far-right activist Meir Ettinger was arrested on Monday on suspicion of involvement with an extremist Jewish organization, while police opened an investigation into videos posted on YouTube of President Rivlin and Prime Minister Netanyahu in Nazi uniform.
Ettinger, who was barred from entering the West Bank or Jerusalem for a year, was arrested by the Judea and Samaria Police and transferred to the Shin Bet for questioning. He is the grandson of far-right late US-born rabbi Meir Kahane, who advocated expelling Arabs from Israel and the Palestinian territories.
In a blog he runs, Ettinger wrote on Thursday, a day before the terror attack in Duma in which a Palestinian baby was murdered, that "the truth must be told - there is no terror organization, but there are a whole lot of Jews, a lot more than people think, whose value-system is completely different than that of the High Court or the Shin Bet, and who are not bound by the laws of the state, but by much more eternal laws, true laws."
Under the blog post titled "Terror organization," he went on to say that "as part of the boastful statement by the Shin Bet about the organization it 'exposed,' things I wrote in this blog several weeks ago were quoted as things from 'the head of the organization.'
To tell you the truth, I don't know what they in the Shin Bet wanted me to organize, and they should definitely look for other people to cast for the roles they need in their show for the media, but this urge of the Shin Bet to create an atmosphere, to put up appearances as if there is some 'organization' it exposed, clearly illustrates to us what those in the Shin Bet understand and are so afraid of."
Under a veil of secrecy, new cells of "hilltop youth" have been formed across the West Bank over the past few months. These groups seek to commit "price tag" attacks, which they say will inflame the situation in the Middle East, and bring redemption and the coming of the Messiah closer. The "hilltop youth," which the Shin Bet's Jewish division nicknamed "happy Jews," believe that exacting a price from the establishment will allow them to form a Jewish state based on Jewish moral values that appear in Jewish holy and literary sources.
Netanyahu and Rivlin as Nazi officers
The alleged arsonist, who smiled and joked as he was taken into custody, is 24-year old Meir Ettinger, the grandson of the late Rabbi Meir Kahane, who was known for his racism and incitement against Arabs, as well as direct involvement in violent racist attacks.
His arrest came five days after the attack, and is the only one so far, despite eyewitness accounts that at least four men were seen running from the village after setting the house on fire with a firebomb and spraypainting it with racist graffiti.
As Meir Ettinger was taken into custody, police investigators told reporters from Ha’aretz newspaper that they suspect the involvement of a right-wing network that is based in Yitzhar settlement, in the northern West Bank, and has planned and carried out dozens of terror attacks against Palestinians.
The group is also suspected of carrying out the arson that burned the Church of the Loaves and Fishes, a holy site for Christians, late last year.
Shin Bet arrests Kahane's grandson, online incitement continues
Far-right activist Meir Ettinger suspected of involvement with extremist Jewish organization; police opens investigation into videos of Netanyahu, Rivlin wearing Nazi uniform.
Far-right activist Meir Ettinger was arrested on Monday on suspicion of involvement with an extremist Jewish organization, while police opened an investigation into videos posted on YouTube of President Rivlin and Prime Minister Netanyahu in Nazi uniform.
Ettinger, who was barred from entering the West Bank or Jerusalem for a year, was arrested by the Judea and Samaria Police and transferred to the Shin Bet for questioning. He is the grandson of far-right late US-born rabbi Meir Kahane, who advocated expelling Arabs from Israel and the Palestinian territories.
In a blog he runs, Ettinger wrote on Thursday, a day before the terror attack in Duma in which a Palestinian baby was murdered, that "the truth must be told - there is no terror organization, but there are a whole lot of Jews, a lot more than people think, whose value-system is completely different than that of the High Court or the Shin Bet, and who are not bound by the laws of the state, but by much more eternal laws, true laws."
Under the blog post titled "Terror organization," he went on to say that "as part of the boastful statement by the Shin Bet about the organization it 'exposed,' things I wrote in this blog several weeks ago were quoted as things from 'the head of the organization.'
To tell you the truth, I don't know what they in the Shin Bet wanted me to organize, and they should definitely look for other people to cast for the roles they need in their show for the media, but this urge of the Shin Bet to create an atmosphere, to put up appearances as if there is some 'organization' it exposed, clearly illustrates to us what those in the Shin Bet understand and are so afraid of."
Under a veil of secrecy, new cells of "hilltop youth" have been formed across the West Bank over the past few months. These groups seek to commit "price tag" attacks, which they say will inflame the situation in the Middle East, and bring redemption and the coming of the Messiah closer. The "hilltop youth," which the Shin Bet's Jewish division nicknamed "happy Jews," believe that exacting a price from the establishment will allow them to form a Jewish state based on Jewish moral values that appear in Jewish holy and literary sources.
Netanyahu and Rivlin as Nazi officers
The Israel Police has opened a criminal investigation against a man who calls himself "Asheriko from Facebook" who posted videos on YouTube that portray Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Reuven Rivlin in Nazi uniform and supposedly talking in German.
The State Attorney's Office authorized the investigation "on suspicion of insulting a public official." The video shows Rivlin in Gestapo uniform giving the Hitler salute and saying: "I am a bootlicking president and a self-hating hypocrite. When Jews are murdered, I don't really care. I love licking Muslims'… I am a Jew-hating Nazi. Sieg Heil, Sieg Heil!"
A caption at the end of the video declares: "Protest!!! Jewish blood is not cheap. Asheriko from Facebook." The man, who also calls himself Oshri, uploaded the videos from his home in New York, and admitted in a conversation with Ynet that he created them. "No one told me I'm being investigated. There is no crime in this," he said. "I made the videos and Rivlin's photo with the kaffiyeh and Hamas' logo."
What are you? A Kahane supporter?
"No, I'm just a secular man who has had enough of Jewish blood being treated as cheap. There hasn't been such a fuss when the Fogel family was slaughtered. Some Muslim was burned, probably a future terrorist, so there's a big fuss, and our president accuses the entire Jewish nation of the crime. It doesn't make sense. Where is the president when Jews are murdered every other day?"
Last year, he admitted, he uploaded photos of Rivlin, then-justice minister Tzipi Livni, then-finance minister Yair Lapid and other Israeli officials in SS uniform, in protest of their objection to the nationality bill. He uploaded the photos under the name "Natan Zoabi" and accompanied them with the text: "The anti-Semites who oppose a Jewish state in the Land of Israel." Police also arrested Gilad Kleiner from Kiryat Malachi on Monday after he incited against the LGBT community on Facebook on Friday, and praised Yishai Shlissel, who is suspected of murdering 16-year-old Shira Banki during the Jerusalem Pride Parade.
Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon said Monday that "we intend on waging an uncompromising battle against Jewish terrorism. This is a fight for the state's image, and we have no intention of giving up on this fight."
He talked about the cabinet's decision to allow administrative arrests for Jewish suspects. "This is a drastic measure we will use sparingly," he vowed.
The State Attorney's Office authorized the investigation "on suspicion of insulting a public official." The video shows Rivlin in Gestapo uniform giving the Hitler salute and saying: "I am a bootlicking president and a self-hating hypocrite. When Jews are murdered, I don't really care. I love licking Muslims'… I am a Jew-hating Nazi. Sieg Heil, Sieg Heil!"
A caption at the end of the video declares: "Protest!!! Jewish blood is not cheap. Asheriko from Facebook." The man, who also calls himself Oshri, uploaded the videos from his home in New York, and admitted in a conversation with Ynet that he created them. "No one told me I'm being investigated. There is no crime in this," he said. "I made the videos and Rivlin's photo with the kaffiyeh and Hamas' logo."
What are you? A Kahane supporter?
"No, I'm just a secular man who has had enough of Jewish blood being treated as cheap. There hasn't been such a fuss when the Fogel family was slaughtered. Some Muslim was burned, probably a future terrorist, so there's a big fuss, and our president accuses the entire Jewish nation of the crime. It doesn't make sense. Where is the president when Jews are murdered every other day?"
Last year, he admitted, he uploaded photos of Rivlin, then-justice minister Tzipi Livni, then-finance minister Yair Lapid and other Israeli officials in SS uniform, in protest of their objection to the nationality bill. He uploaded the photos under the name "Natan Zoabi" and accompanied them with the text: "The anti-Semites who oppose a Jewish state in the Land of Israel." Police also arrested Gilad Kleiner from Kiryat Malachi on Monday after he incited against the LGBT community on Facebook on Friday, and praised Yishai Shlissel, who is suspected of murdering 16-year-old Shira Banki during the Jerusalem Pride Parade.
Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon said Monday that "we intend on waging an uncompromising battle against Jewish terrorism. This is a fight for the state's image, and we have no intention of giving up on this fight."
He talked about the cabinet's decision to allow administrative arrests for Jewish suspects. "This is a drastic measure we will use sparingly," he vowed.
