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Why is the IDF catching Jewish terrorists less than Palestinian ones? – analysis
The IDF is doing a better job at catching Palestinian terrorists than Jewish ones.
Anecdotal evidence and statistical evidence both bear this out.
As of August 2024, there were 9,881 Palestinian security inmates being held by Israel.
3,432 Palestinians were being held in administrative detention along with 1,584 Palestinian “unlawful combatants,” 2,074 sentenced prisoners, and 2,791 pre-indictment or pre-conviction detainees.We also know that in the West Bank alone, close to 5,000 Palestinians have been detained over the course of the war.
Sometimes Palestinian terrorists are not immediately caught after an attack, but quite often they are, and it is very rare that they are not caught or killed within a period of weeks or months.
Yet, in multiple February 2023 incidents of Jewish terrorists attacking Palestinians in Huwara, we know that out of hundreds of Jewish attackers, less than 10 were arrested, and an even smaller number seem to be getting prosecuted.
So far out of over 100 Jewish terrorists who attacked the Palestinian village of Jit in mid-August, only four have been detained.
These trends are not new.
Outgoing IDF Central Commander for the West Bank, Maj. Gen, Yedhua Fuchs, said this in his final speech on July 8, current Shin Bet Chief Ronen Bar recently accused officials like National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir of sometimes indirectly and sometimes almost explicitly encouraging the phenomenon, and former Shin Bet and IDF Central Commanders have been sounding somewhat similar warnings on and off certainly since 2014.
The IDF and Shin Bet have also accused Ben Gvir of discouraging the police from reining in Jewish violence, whether in the West Bank or against humanitarian aid trucks trying to get to Kerem Shalom to bring food to Gaza Palestinians earlier in the current war.
There has been extremist Jewish violence against Palestinians with significantly below expectations arrests for many years, even though that violence is still at a much lower volume than Palestinian violence.
The problem isn’t bringing caught perpetrators to justice, that has been happening many times since 2014, when Palestinians have been killed by a Jew or Jews.
Once caught, Israel has pushed hard to prosecute such persons.
On August 15, the Jerusalem Post reported exclusively that the 2019 indictment against a full-bodied minor (his identity is under gag order) for the alleged killing of Palestinian female and mother Aysha Rabi in October 2018 could be close to a verdict in later 2024 or early 2025.
This would not be the only such case of Jewish terrorists facing justice for violence against Palestinians, with the 2014 murderer of Palestinian minor Muhammad Abu Khadir, Yoseph Chaim Ben David, and the 2015 murderer of the Palestinian Dawabsheh family, Amiram Ben Uliel, both sentenced to life in jail in recent years.
Elor Ben Azariah, Ben Deri, and other IDF soldiers have also been given prison time for killing Palestinians.
But this does not address the fact that most Jewish terrorists are never caught in the first place.
So why does Israel catch Jewish terrorists less often than Palestinian ones?
Some of it is the constant passing the ball back and forth between the IDF and the Police, neither of who wants the politically unpopular job of reining in Jewish violence against Palestinians.
Anyone who does that job “well” in recent years comes under attack by Ben Gvir and others who seem to always be opposed to indicting or convicting Jews accused of attacking Palestinians.
Top IDF sources have made it clear to the Post that the military’s main role is to fight wars against other foreign militaries like Iran, Hezbollah, and Hamas, not to enforce law and order to block small-scale Jewish violence against Palestinians. They believe that the police should be handling Jewish violence in the West Bank, whereas the police, even before Ben Gvir, said they could not carry out large operations in Palestinian areas without the IDF taking the lead.
What has changed since Huwara in 2023 and now with Jit, is that the attacks by Jews on Palestinians are no longer solely small scale.
Now there is a pattern of large scale attacks even if the number of them is still small in relative terms.
During the Second Intifada, Israel decided that it could not view Palestinian terrorism from the West Bank as a mere “law enforcement” issue with very limited rules of engagement.
Rather, it was a terrorism issue, which meant more aggressive rules of engagement.
If a Palestinian throws a rock at an IDF vehicle and breaks the windshield and then flees, even if no one in the IDF vehicle was hurt and even though the Palestinian is running away, and as such no longer presents an immediate threat, IDF open fire rules allow shooting for the Palestinian’s legs to make sure he does not escape.
At Jit, despite over 100 Jews attacking Palestinians and the IDF soldiers “live being in danger” from the Jews as well, all they did was physically push the Jewish attackers out of the village and at most fire in the air.
Sources said that they failed to arrest any of the over 100 Jews because it was hard to catch the attackers running in all different directions at night.
But if the soldiers were allowed to shoot for the legs when trying to arrest Jews involved in large scale attacks, maybe they would have caught more of them. Maybe also fewer Jews would risk attacking Palestinians.
Confronted with this possible change to the open fire rules, both current and former IDF officials who handle such issues did not seem to view such a change as remotely likely.
Some said this question was very dependent on the unique circumstances on the ground, which only the commander seeing things in real time could decide. Others said that there was no principled reason why IDF soldiers could not open fire on the legs of fleeing Jewish attackers, but that this could only be employed if there was no less lethal way of arresting them.
Yet, these responses present the issue as if there is not already evidence that the IDF is doing an extremely poor job of catching such people.
4 out of 100 is a 4% success rate. Clearly, less lethal means are not working and whoever the commander on the ground has been has not acted aggressively enough. This was also the conclusion of the IDF probe issued on Wednesday of the Jit incident.
A much more honest read is that IDF soldiers shooting at Jews legs (even not trying to kill) to protect Palestinians would just be either too politically explosive or likely too many IDF soldiers would ignore the orders and fake some technical sounding reason why they could not fire (such as innocent people being mixed in with attackers.)
There might be creative alternatives. Firing some kind of tracer that cannot be removed or object which could sedate someone trying to flee.
A huge permanent contingent of soldiers guarding all crossover areas throughout the West Bank could succeed, but is also unrealistic in terms of resources.
In the meantime, it is not clear that the IDF has seriously contended with how it will prevent the next Huwara or Jit. If that does not change, no one should be surprised when another IDF probe comes out apologizing for failing to protect Palestinians.
Despite the growing criticism, Israel is standing firm in its attempt to banish the United Nations Relief and Works Agency from operating in its territory.
Since its ban came into effect on January 30, Israeli authorities have severed coordination ties with the agency, shut down schools in east Jerusalem, and effectively forced international staff to leave.
The government’s decision was largely driven by its expanding allegations that UNRWA employees hold links to terrorist organizations.
The fallout has been swift. Countries such as the United States, Canada, New Zealand, and the European Union have suspended or withdrawn funding, citing concerns over neutrality.Beyond the political maneuvering and aid cuts, the issue has added fresh scrutiny to a decades-old debate that remains unresolved: Who qualifies as a Palestinian refugee? And should this status be inherited indefinitely – even by millionaires?
A refugee definition unlike any other
UNRWA was created shortly after the 1948 Arab-Israeli war to assist 750,000 Palestinians displaced by the conflict. Today, its registry lists over six million refugees.
Critics argue that no other refugee group in the world operates with this mandate.
“Unlike every other refugee crisis in history, Palestinian refugees don’t decrease in number – they increase. UNRWA doesn’t resettle, it perpetuates,” says Dina Rovner, legal adviser for UN Watch. “The result? A crisis that has lasted decades longer than any other.”
Among those classified as Palestinian refugees is Jordanian-American real estate mogul Mohamed Hadid and his five millionaire children, including supermodels Bella and Gigi Hadid. Twenty-nine-year-old Zahwa Arafat, the billionaire daughter of former Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, also retains this status.
Under UNRWA’s unique framework, all descendants of Palestinian refugees “who lost both their home and means of livelihood in Mandate Palestine between 1946-1948 are eligible for refugee status,” regardless of wealth or nationality – a stark contrast to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), which removes individuals from its registries once they are resettled or naturalized.
UNRWA, though, asserts that Palestinian refugee status is determined by the UN General Assembly, not the agency itself.
“Palestinian refugees were recognized under Resolution 194 before UNRWA existed, where human rights were not subjected to economic status,” says Jonathan Fowler, UNRWA’s senior communications manager. “In mass displacements, refugee status applies collectively and passes through generations, as seen with Afghan, Sudanese, and Sahrawi refugees”
“Yet, the difference is striking. After WWII, millions were displaced, primarily in Europe, but around 1.5 million were resettled by temporary UN agencies before UNHCR took over in 1952. In contrast, 77 years later, UNRWA remains a permanent institution, even as many, like the 2.4 million in Jordan who hold citizenship, continue receiving its assistance.”
This raises a pivotal question: Does UNRWA’s approach maintain statelessness rather than resolving it?
The debate over disparities
The controversy extends beyond definitions. Critics hold that UNRWA’s budget and staff allocation raise questions about its efficiency compared to other refugee agencies.
When first established, UNRWA’s annual budget was 110 times greater than UNHCRs. Today, it employs 30,000 staff for nearly six million refugees – a 1:200 ratio. In contrast, UNHCR, which serves around 32 million refugees globally, operates with 20,000 staff, translating to one staff member per 1,600 refugees.
“There is a clear inconsistency in how the world treats the Palestinians compared to other refugees,” says Rovner. “If they were under the UNHCR, the majority would not be considered eligible.”
Fowler counters the criticism, explaining that UNRWA’s economic and service model is fundamentally different and of significant value. “It was designed as a sustained relief and works program until a viable solution is achieved, much like the 1930s US Tennessee Valley Authority.” Moreover, he adds, “the value for money is extraordinary – hiring locals not only brings local benefits but also costs 40%-50% less than employing internationals.”
UNRWA under fire
As the debate over refugee classification rages on, Israel’s reports of UNRWA’s connections to terrorism have also dominated recent discussions. Citing its intelligence findings, Israeli authorities maintain that 10% of the agency’s senior educators in Gaza have ties to Hamas or Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
“UNRWA’s response is always the same – to deflect, deny, and cover up. They never take responsibility. They claim to be a ‘humanitarian backbone’ in Gaza but promote Hamas propaganda, like it did with the Gaza famine narrative, which has been totally debunked,” charges Rovner.
However, there are also claims that UNRWA is being targeted politically, as Fowler indicates: “There’s a barrage of misinformation about who we are and who we’re not. We share all our staff lists with regional authorities, including Israel, and have never received pushback about specific employees before.”
Despite Israel’s push to dismantle UNRWA, many European nations have since reinstated funding after reviewing oversight measures and accounting for its critical humanitarian role. Fowler points to the recently commissioned and independent Colonna Report, which found UNRWA to have more robust neutrality standards than any other UN agency. Still, critics like Rovner, remain unconvinced, contending that the problem is systemic.
What happens if UNRWA does disappear?
With increasing calls within Israel and the United States to abolish UNRWA, the question arises: If UNRWA disappears, what happens next?
Fowler says that the organization has no intention of existing indefinitely, but it continues so far as the situation remains unresolved.
“Abolishing UNRWA ignores reality,” observes Fowler. “We are often thanked by Israeli authorities, albeit at the moment not so openly, for the work we do, because without us, the responsibility will fall on them.”
The topic of reform has come up quite a lot where UNRWA and the UN at large are concerned. Some believe that redefining Palestinian refugees under UNHCR rules could force a shift in the political deadlock. Others, though, insist not only is it too little, too late for reforms, but that they are insufficient in addressing the deeper issues.
“As long as UNRWA exists, there will always be a Palestinian right-of-return narrative that keeps the conflict alive. Palestinians have to step up to the plate and take responsibility for their own future. Without Palestinian self-determination, chances of a prosperous future are slim,” says Rovner.
Questions without answers
With funding cuts, Israeli bans, and growing global pressure, UNRWA finds itself at a crossroads. Today, it is continuing to operate, even on a limited scale – holding that as long as millions remain classified as refugees, it has a job to do.
Still, fundamental questions continue to go unanswered: Who should be classified a Palestinian refugee? Should refugee status be hereditary forever – even for those who live in luxury? Who should be responsible for the Palestinians? And what is Israel’s role?
With neither Israel disappearing nor the Palestinian refugee issue nearing resolution, UNRWA persists as a central fault line in one of the world’s most protracted conflicts. Whether the agency serves as a crucial humanitarian lifeline or a political roadblock to lasting peace depends entirely on whom you ask.
Israel’s political echelon, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has ordered the IDF to prepare for an “immediate” return to fighting in Gaza, KAN News reported on Friday evening.
The Jerusalem Post reported earlier this week that Israeli officials estimated that if no agreement was reached between Israel and Hamas, Israel would return to fighting in Gaza in about a week and a half.
“Hamas is currently rejecting [US Middle East envoy Steve] Witkoff’s proposal, so it is very difficult to make progress,” one official said.
According to the Prime Minister’s Office, Witkoff’s plan involves the release of half of the living hostages and the return of half of the bodies on the first day of the continued deal. The rest of the hostages and bodies would be returned on the 42nd day, which would be the final day of the ceasefire.However, some claim that the terrorist organization has not rejected the proposal. According to a source familiar with the negotiations, “Hamas has neither accepted nor rejected the Witkoff proposal.”
Eyal Zamir to Gaza border community heads: We’re preparing to fight
On his first day as the new IDF chief of staff on Thursday, Lt.-Gen. Eyal Zamir told heads of local councils from the Gaza border communities that “we are preparing to return to fighting” in Gaza.
“We must defeat Hamas,” Zamir said. “We are also preparing to resume fighting. The hostages are our top priority.”
Amichai Stein contributed to this report.
Negotiations over the continued release of hostages held in Gaza have stalled, and “right now there is nothing happening,” sources familiar with details of the talks admitted in conversation with The Jerusalem Post on Monday.
“Right now, there’s nothing happening,” an Israeli official told the Post, adding that “Hamas is currently rejecting the Witkoff proposal, so it is very difficult to make progress.”
According to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office, the Witkoff plan involves the release of half of the living hostages and the return of half of the bodies on the first day of the deal. The second half of the hostages and bodies would be returned on the 42nd day, which would be the final day of the ceasefire.
On the other hand, some claim that Hamas has not rejected the proposal. “Hamas has neither accepted nor rejected the Witkoff proposal,” said a source with knowledge of the negotiations with the Post.“Hamas has said it is willing to negotiate and has not rejected the plan. Since Israel currently states that this is the proposal on the table, from Israel’s perspective, Hamas has rejected it.”
Trump envoy Steve Witkoff not expected to visit Israel soon, source says
An Israeli source told the Post that there is no expectation for Trump’s envoy, Steve Witkoff, to visit the region at the moment, adding, “He will only come to finalize a deal. And since there is no real progress right now, it is unclear when or if he will arrive.”
Without an agreement on the release of additional hostages in the coming days, Israeli sources say Israel is preparing to escalate its actions against Hamas. After the decision on Sunday to stop humanitarian aid, Israel is preparing to cut off water and electricity to the Gaza Strip, as well as resume fighting – some say this might happen, without a deal, as early as next week.
Israeli officials suggest that even without accepting the Witkoff initiative, Hamas might agree to release additional hostages in the near future in exchange for the release of terrorists from prison and the entry of caravans and humanitarian aid, but they add that this also depends on other issues.
“The Israeli government needs to decide what will be negotiated with Hamas and what they will receive in exchange for the release of hostages in the coming weeks,” said an Israeli source. “Hamas’s agreement to release more hostages depends on the answers to these questions.”
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Monday that Israel responded to the mediators’ request to allow a few more days of negotiations. Katz added,d “If Hamas does not release the hostages soon, the gates of Gaza will be locked and the gates of hell will be opened – we will return to fighting, and they will face the IDF with forces and methods they have never encountered before.”
Israeli officials suggest that even without accepting the Witkoff initiative, Hamas might agree to release additional hostages in the near future in exchange for the release of terrorists from prison and the entry of caravans and humanitarian aid, but they add that this also depends on other issues. “The Israeli government needs to decide what will be negotiated with Hamas and what they will receive in exchange for the release of hostages in the coming weeks,” said an Israeli source. “Hamas’s agreement to release more hostages depends on the answers to these questions.”
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