Gush Etzion Regional Council head and Chairman of the Yesha Council Shlomo Ne”eman responded Saturday evening to a statement by top security officials condemning recent violence.
In his statement, which was a response to a joint statement by the IDF Chief of Staff, Shin Ben chief, and Israel Police Commissioner about recent violence, Ne’eman said, “After an unbearably difficult week, we see what is happening in Judea and Samaria and we don”t have a positive feeling about it. For more than a year, terrorism has been rampant in our streets and most recently has been increasing, and has reached a peak.”
“We demand that the IDF and the political echelon act with all of the tools at their disposal in order to strike at the terrorist infrastructure, including those who support, instigate, and finance terrorism – and defeat them. Unfortunately until now, it seems that these demands have not been met. The heroism of our fighters in order to neutralize the threats is extremely important, but it has not changed the de-facto security reality.
“Terrorism continues and is harming the State of Israel and her citizens. In this reality, a small handful of Jews, out of desperation and frustration, have taken the law into their own hands. We should not mimic our barbarous enemy, go wild, and do harm indiscriminately. We have what the terrorists and their supporters do not have – a sense of humanity.”

Ne’eman continued, “We, the appointed officials of Judea and Samaria, are engaged in education, teaching the love for the people and the land of Israel, and even during these times, at the funerals of friends and children, in the mourner”s tents, and while visiting the wounded. In our country, the local municipality does not play a role in criminal enforcement. The leaders of Judea and Samaria should not be the ones to deal with those who are on the wrong path.”
“We call on the appropriate authorities to enforce the laws and not transfer that responsibility onto us, while expecting obvious but meaningless condemnations. The residents of Judea and Samaria are not violent and don”t take the law into their own hands. And those who are criminals, should be dealt with to the full extent of the law.”