U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned on Wednesday that the rising number of violent incidents in Judea and Samaria could affect the Gaza ceasefire, amid a rise in violent incidents in the area recently.
"Certainly there's some concern about events in the West Bank spilling over and creating an effect that could undermine what we're doing in Gaza," Rubio said following a meeting of the Group of Seven (G7) foreign ministers in Canada.
Earlier, in response to a question by reporters regarding whether the unrest could threaten the ceasefire in Gaza, Rubio had answered, "We don't expect it to. We'll do everything we can to make sure it doesn't happen."
Judea and Samaria have seen a series of violent attacks, most tied to members of the so-called Hilltop Youth, an extreme group within the settler movement, which seeks to drive Arabs out of Judea and Samaria through acts of targeted harassment and violence.
Clear statements by the administration of President Donald Trump against such violence have been rare, with a few notable exceptions, such as the statement by Ambassador Mike Huckabee in June of this year, condemning an incident near an ancient church in Samaria.
President Trump himself revoked sanctions imposed by President Joe Biden against several settlers and settler organizations linked to violence against Palestinians.
While some in the settler movement see the group as a nuisance and the IDF has strongly condemned it, the group has enjoyed relative political amnesty from National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who was affiliated with the group in his youth.
Along with Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, Ben Gvir pressured Defense Minister Israel Katz to suspend the use of administrative detention orders against Jewish settlers and activists accused of violence against Palestinians.
Recently, a group of IDF commanders in Judea and Samaria asked Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir to reinstate the use of such detentions against instigators.
The commanders noted that the Israel Police are often unwilling to detain or prosecute violent settlers who have been apprehended by the military.
On Tuesday, dozens of masked Israelis attacked homes and businesses in the Palestinian towns of Beit Lid and Dayr Sharaf near the city of Tulkarm, setting fire to vehicles and other property.
Four suspects were arrested by the IDF and handed over to police; however, as of Wednesday morning, only one was still in custody. Meanwhile, the IDF counted 94 participants in the attacks.
The arrest of Israelis involved in attacks against Palestinians in Judea and Samaria is rare, and the successful prosecution of such events is even more scarce.
Israel Police commander Avishai Muallem, who led the police investigations and intelligence unit in Judea and Samaria, was recently reinstated to an administrative position after a six-month suspension, despite being under investigation for refusing to act against incidents of settler violence.
His return to the force reportedly came under pressure from Ben Gvir.
Military officials say the IDF lacks the proper tools to deal with the increasing number of attacks against Palestinians and Bedouins in Judea and Samaria by extremist, violent settlers, such as the Hilltop Youth.
There has been an increase in "nationalistic" violence against Arabs in Judea and Samaria this year. The rise in violence saw another spike during the annual olive harvest, which began in October.
Last month, the military recorded 86 incidents of "nationalistic crime," against 25 such incidents in the same period in 2024.
During 2025, 704 incidents of "nationalistic crime" were recorded by Israeli defense authorities. This compares to 675 in the whole year 2024.
On Thursday morning, a mosque in the village of Deir Istiya, in Samaria, was set on fire, and anti-Muslim as well as anti-IDF graffiti in Hebrew was sprayed on the building.
No arrests in the incidents were reported.
Republished with permission from All Israel News