“Most of them are sweet kids,” Ben-Gvir said during a meeting to address settler violence, which sparked a wave of international outcry.
The meeting was attended by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the heads of the Shin Bet (General Security Service), Ronen Bar, and the Armed Forces, Herzi Halevi, the head of Strategic Affairs, Ron Dermer, and the Minister Defense, Yoav Gallant, among others, the newspaper detailed.
According to the publication, Ben Gvir, who is known for his racist and anti-Arab rhetoric, criticized the arrest of the settlers for their acts of vandalism. He also rejected the complaints about the riots caused by the settlers, and questioned the telephone conversation between Gallant and the secretary general of the Palestine Liberation Organization, Hussein Al-Sheikh, on Tuesday.
Several towns have come under assault by the settlers since last week, including Huwara, Turmusaya, Urif and Umm Safa, where numerous houses and cars were burnt.
A few days ago, the Palestinian government described as aberrational and genocidal the statements by Ben Gvir, who called for launching a large-scale military operation in the West Bank to “kill thousands of terrorists.”
“Such comments demonstrate clear criminal and murderous intent,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates denounced in a statement adding that the comments “reflect Israel’s abject contempt for the lives of Palestinians people and the pervasive culture of impunity regarding Palestinian lives and rights.
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