February 10, 2022
Dear Ambassador Herzog,
In recent months, we have seen an alarming increase in frequent and violent attacks on Palestinians by settlers. A recent study shows that the majority of incidents take place in areas near outposts that are considered illegal even by Israeli law.
As Jewish clergy and members of T’ruah, a rabbinic human rights organization, we are committed to a just and secure future for both Israelis and Palestinians. We are heartbroken and enraged by the violence, which has included inflicting serious injuries on children and adults, damaging homes, and uprooting trees. It is only a matter of time before this wave of violence leads to loss of life. We cannot let that happen.
We call on the Israeli government to take immediate action to stop the violence by:
1) swiftly arresting and charging the perpetrators of these attacks
2) dismantling outposts that are illegal even according to Israeli law
Thus far, almost none of those who have carried out these attacks have been arrested, and even fewer have been indicted and brought to justice. Videos and eyewitness reports show soldiers standing by, failing to intervene, and even protecting the settlers carrying out the attacks.
Reports indicate that violent incidents perpetrated by Jews against Palestinians in the West Bank have risen more than 150% since 2019. This Simchat Torah, dozens of masked settlers set out from the illegal outposts of Havat Ma’on and Avigail escorted by Israeli security forces and attacked the Palestinian residents of nearby Khirbet al-Mufaqarah in what can only be described as a pogrom. The attackers injured twelve people, including a toddler who was hospitalized with a head injury. In November, settlers attacked three Israeli activists who were helping Palestinians harvest olives. The attack came after Israeli soldiers, who had been guarding the farmers, left the area. In December, settlers in Hebron attacked a 7-year old girl on her way home from school. The almost daily attacks have also included Molotov cocktails thrown through windows, and stones thrown at cars, and at Palestinian farmers as well as the Israeli activists accompanying them. These acts of violence have the larger goal of chasing Palestinians off of their lands, and appropriating this land for settlers, contrary to international law.
While the settlers attacking Palestinians claim to be defending the land of Israel, they are actually polluting it, per warnings in the Torah and Talmud:
For the sin of bloodshed, the Temple is destroyed, and the Divine Presence leaves Israel, as it says: “You shall not pollute the land in which you live.” (Numbers 35:33) Talmud Shabbat 33a
The Israeli government recognizes that there is a problem, as evidenced by Defense Minister Benny Gantz recently convening an emergency meeting on the issue, and members of the governing coalition, along with Israeli NGOs, hosting a Stop Settler Violence conference in Knesset. What’s needed now is action.
It is the responsibility of those in power to ensure the rule of law in their jurisdictions. In one Midrash, God warns:
R. Eliezer said: If there is din (justice/rule of law) below, there is no need for din from above. But if there is no din from below, there will be din from above. . .
Thus, the Holy Blessed One said, “Observe the laws (mishpat) so as not to force me to enforce mishpat from above.”
Midrash Tanchuma 5:7
Taking immediate action to observe the law and address settler violence is urgent and necessary, but it is only a first step in addressing a systemic issue. As long as settlements thrive and grow in violation of international law, and as long as the occupation continues, Palestinians will not achieve the human rights protections that they, like Israelis and all other people, deserve.
We call on the Israeli government to follow its obligations to uphold international human rights law by dismantling illegal outposts and bringing perpetrators to justice.
Sincerely,
Rabbi Susan Abramson – Burlington, MA
Cantor Sheri Allen – Fort Worth, TX
Rabbi Adina Allen – Berkeley, CA
Rabbi Doug Alpert – Kansas City, MO
Rabbi Renni Altman – Poughkeepsie, NY
Rabbi Victoria Armour-Hileman – Ossining, NY
Rabbi Melanie Aron – Los Gatos, CA
Rabbi Emily Aronson – Brooklyn, NY
Rabbi Guy Austrian – New York, NY
Rabbi Ethan Bair – Clinton, NY
Rabbi Adam Baldachin – Scarsdale, NY
Rabbi Bernard Barsky – Dayton, OH
Rabbi Eliot Baskin – Greenwood Village, CO
Rabbi Rachel Bearman – Saint Louis, MO
Rabbi Laura Bellows – Jamaica Plain, MA
Rabbi James Bennett – Saint Louis, MO
Rabbi Allan Berkowitz – San Jose, CA
Rabbi Marc Berkson – Milwaukee, WI
Rabbi Donald Berlin – Bethesda, MD
Rabbi Marjorie Berman – Clarks Summit, PA
Rabbi Phyllis Berman – Philadelphia, PA
Rabbi Aryeh Bernstein – Chicago, IL
Rabbi Jonathan Biatch – Madison, WI
Rabbi Barry Block – Little Rock, AR
Rabbi Rena Blumenthal – New Paltz, NY
Rabbi Jill Borodin – Seattle, WA
Rabbi Anna Boswell-Levy – Yardley, PA
Rabbi Bradd Boxman – Parkland, FL
Rabbi Gary Bretton-Granatoor – Brooklyn, NY
Rabbi Daniel Bronstein – Brooklyn, NY
Rabbi Deborah Bronstein – Boulder, CO
Rabbi Sharon Brous – Los Angeles, CA
Rabbi Yechiel Buchband – Valley Stream, NY
Rabbi Angela Buchdahl – New York, NY
Rabbi Meredith Cahn – Petaluma, CA
Cantor Jack Chomsky – Columbus, OH
Rabbi Geoffrey Claussen – Greensboro, NC
Rabbi Abby Cohen – Portland, OR
Rabbi Ayelet S. Cohen – New York, NY
Rabbi Howard Cohen – Bennington, VT
Rabbi Paul Cohen – Northfield, IL
Rabbi Emily Cohen – Brooklyn, NY
Rabbi Heidi Coretz – Dallas, TX
Rabbi Deena Cowans – Chicago, IL
Rabbi Meryl Creab – Upper Gwynedd, PA
Rabbi William Cutter – Los Angeles, CA
Rabbi Eric Cytryn – Chicago, IL
Rabbi Faith Joy Dantowitz – Cupertino, CA
Rabbi Justin David – Northampton, MA
Rabbi Robert Dobrusin – Ann Arbor, MI
Rabbi Elliot Dorff – Los Angeles, CA
Rabbi Billy Dreskin – Ardsley, NY
Rabbi Ellen Dreyfus – Homewood, IL
Rabbi David Eber – Chicago, IL
Rabbi Laurence Edwards – Chicago, IL
Rabbi Amy Eilberg – Los Altos, CA
Rabbi Susan Einbinder – Providence, RI
Rabbi Marc Ekstrand – New London, CT
Rabbi Barat Ellman – Brooklyn, NY
Rabbi Andrew Ettin – Pfafftown, NC
Rabbi Susan Falk – Brooklyn, NY
Rabbi Charles Feinberg – Washington, DC
Rabbi Nora Feinstein – Washington, DC
Cantor Devorah Felder-Levy – Los Gatos, CA
Rabbi Zev-Hayyim Feyer – Pomona, CA
Rabbi Avi Fine – Renton, WA
Rabbi Brian Fink – Brooklyn, NY
Rabbi Tirzah Firestone – Boulder, CO
Rabbi Adam Fisher – Port Jefferson Station, NY
Rabbi Betsy Forester – Madison, WI
Rabbi John Franken – Baltimore, MD
Rabbi Dayle Friedman – Philadelphia, PA
Rabbi Serena Fujita – Somerville, MA
Rabbi Ruth Gais – Summit, NJ
Rabbi Daniel Geffen – Sag Harbor, NY
Rabbi Laura Geller – Los Angeles, CA
Rabbi Miriyam Glazer – Los Angeles, CA
Rabbi Ilan Glazer – Baltimore, MD
Rabbi Arnold Gluck – Skillman, NJ
Rabbi Bob Gluck – Albany, NY
Rabbi Laura Gold – New York, NY
Rabbi Susan Goldberg – Los Angeles, CA
Rabbi Daniel Goldblatt – Danville, CA
Rabbi Rachel Goldenberg – Jackson Heights, NY
Rabbi Shelley Goldman – West Chester, PA
Rabbi Barbara Goldman-Wartell – Binghamton, NY
Rabbi Seth Goldstein – Olympia, WA
Rabbi Debra Goldstein – Natick, MA
Rabbi Robert Goldstein – Andover, MA
Rabbi Andy Gordon – Baltimore, MD
Rabbi Maralee Gordon – Woodstock, IL
Rabbi Lynn Gottlieb – Berkeley, CA
Rabbi Arthur Green – Newton Center, MA
Rabbi Fred Greene – Erie, CO
Rabbi David Greenstein – Montclair, NJ
Rabbi Suzanne Griffel – Chicago, IL
Rabbi Tom Gutherz – Charlottesville, VA
Rabbi Maurice Harris – Glenside, PA
Rabbi Floyd Herman – Towson, MD
Rabbi Lizzi Heydemann – Chicago, IL
Rabbi Jay Heyman – Santa Fe, NM
Rabbi Michael Holzman – Reston, VA
Cantor Sandy Horowitz – New York, NY
Rabbi Margo Hughes-Robinson – New York, NY
Rabbi Mark Hurvitz – New York, NY
Rabbi Yitzhak Husbands-Hankin – Eugene, OR
Rabbinic Pastor Eve Ilsen – Boulder, CO
Rabbi Brian Immerman – Hamden, CT
Rabbi Lisa Izes – Irvington, NY
Rabbi Steven Jacobs – Alameda, CA
Rabbi Devorah Jacobson – Hadley, MA
Rabbi Jennifer Jaech – Peekskill, NY
Rabbi Ellen Jaffe-Gill – Virginia Beach, VA
Kohenet Judith T. Hollander – New York, NY
Rabbi Randy Kafka – Stoughton, MA
Rabbi Rachel Kahn-Troster – Teaneck, NJ
Rabbi Debra Kassoff – Jackson, MS
Rabbi Nancy Kasten – Dallas, TX
Rabbi Jim Kaufman – Van Nuys, CA
Rabbi Allan Kensky – Evanston, IL
Rabbi Justin Kerber – Carmel, IN
Rabbi Peg Kershenbaum – Royersford, PA
Rabbi Paul Kipnes – Tarzana, CA
Rabbi Emma Kippley-Ogman – Saint Paul, MN
Rabbi Sharon Kleinbaum – New York, NY
Rabbi David L Kline – Brooklyn, NY
Rabbi Marc Kline – Long Branch, NJ
Rabbi Michael Knopf – Richmond, VA
Rabbi Ira Korinow – Westwood, MA
Rabbi Douglas Krantz – Townsend, DE
Rabbi Claudia Kreiman – Brookline, MA
Rabbi Alex Kress – Los Angeles, CA
Rabbi Karen Landy – Brookline, MA
Rabbi Rachmiel Langer – Littleton, MA
Rabbi Gilah Langner – Washington, DC
Rabbi David Lazar – Palm Springs, CA
Rabbi Jim Lebeau – Lowell, MA
Rabbi Allan Lehmann – Newton Center, MA
Rabbi Darby Leigh – Concord, MA
Rabbi Michele Lenke – Los Angeles, CA
Rabbi Joshua Lesser – Atlanta, GA
Rabbi David Levin – Wynnewood, PA
Rabbi Joshua Levine Grater – Pasadena, CA
Rabbi Sheldon Lewis – Palo Alto, CA
Rabbi Michael Lezak – San Francisco, CA
Rabbi John A. Linder – Phoenix, AZ
Rabbi Mordechai Liebling – Philadelphia, PA
Rabbi Jonathan Lipnick – New York, NY
Cantor David Lipp – Louisville, KY
Rabbi Ellen Lippmann – Brooklyn, NY
Rabbi Andrea London – Evanston, IL
Cantor Abbe Lyons – Ithaca, NY
Rabbi Devorah Marcus – San Diego, CA
Rabbi Paula Marcus – Aptos, CA
Rabbi Marc Margolius – New York, NY
Rabbi Jeff Marker – Brooklyn, NY
Rabbi Jessica Meyer – San Francisco, CA
Rabbi Abby Michaleski – Sicklerville, NJ
Rabbi Mimi Micner – Watertown, MA
Rabbi David Mivasair – State College, PA
Rabbi Katie Mizrahi – San Francisco, CA
Cantor Hasha Perman – Skokie, IL
Rabbi Laurie Phillips – Brooklyn, NY
Rabbi Zachary Plesent – Stamford, CT
Rabbi William Plevan – New York, NY
Rabbi Robin Podolsky – Los Angeles, CA
Rabbi Aaron Potek – Washington, DC
Rabbi Marcia Prager – Philadelphia, PA
Rabbi Sally Priesand – Asbury Park, NJ
Rabbi Charles P Rabinowitz – Larchmont, NY
Rabbi Victor Reinstein – Jamaica Plain, MA
Cantor Lance Rhodes – White Plains, NY
Rabba Dorothy Richman – Albany, CA
Rabbi Moti Rieber – Overland Park, KS
Rabbi Shani Rosenbaum – Cambridge, MA
Rabbi John Rosove – Sherman Oaks, CA
Rabbi Seymour Rosenbloom – Elkins Park, PA
Rabbi Francine Roston – Whitefish, MT
Rabbi Michael Rothbaum – Acton, MA
Rabbi Bob Rottenberg – Arcata, CA
Cantor Michal Rubin – Columbia, SC
Rabbi Robert Rubin – Brick, NJ
Rabbi Ralph Ruebner – Skokie, IL
Rabbi Laura Rumpf – Oakland, CA
Rabbi Gila Ruskin – Philadelphia, PA
Rabbi Regina Sandler-Phillips – Brooklyn, NY
Rabbi Jade Sank Ross – Port Washington, NY
Rabbi Simone Schicker – Kalamazoo, MI
Rabbi Howie Schneider – Aptos, CA
Rabbi Ismar Schorsch – New York, NY
Rabbi Jeremy Schwartz – Willimantic, CT
Rabbi Sid Schwarz – Rockville, MD
Rabbi Stephen Segar – Shaker Heights, OH
Rabbi Judith Seid – Pleasanton, CA
Rabbi Mayer Selekman – Bala Cynwyd, PA
Rabbi Gerry Serotta – Chevy Chase, MD
Rabbi Judy Shanks – Oakland, CA
Rabbi Ronald Shapiro – Milwaukee, WI
Rabbi Dina Shargel – White Plains, NY
Rabbi Randy Sheinberg – New Hyde Park, NY
Rabbi Fred Sherlinder Dobb – Washington, DC
Rabbi Jessica Shimberg – Nashville, TN
Rabbi David Shneyer – Rockville, MD
Rabbi Alexandria Shuval-Weiner – Roswell, GA
Rabbi Becky Silverstein – Jamaica Plain, MA
Rabbi Mia Simring – New York, NY
Rabbi Rabbi Suzanne Singer – Riverside, CA
Rabbi Jonathan Slater – Hastings on Hudson, NY
Rabbi Amy Small – Burlington, VT
Rabbi Joel Soffin – New York, NY
Rabbi Robin Sparr – Natick, MA
Rabbi Hannah Spiro – Washington, DC
Rabbi Toba Spitzer – Waltham, MA
Rabbi Erica Steelman – Philadelphia, PA
Rabbi Naomi Steinberg – Carlotta, CA
Rabbi David Steinberg – Duluth, MN
Rabbi Lane Steinger – Saint Louis, MO
Rabbi Danielle Stillman – Middlebury, VT
Rabbi Jamie Stolper – Auburndale, MA
Rabbi Andrew Straus – Oakland, CA
Rabbi Joshua Strom – Chappaqua, NY
Rabbi Shira Stutman – Washington, DC
Rabbi Barbara Symons – Monroeville, PA
Rabbi Robert Tabak – Elkins Park, PA
Rabbi Susan Talve – Saint Louis, MO
Rabbi Elliott Tepperman – West Orange, NJ
Rabbi David Teutsch – Philadelphia, PA
Rabbi Rachel Timoner – Brooklyn, NY
Rabbi Gordon Tucker – White Plains, NY
Rabbi David Vaisberg – Maplewood, NJ
Rabbi Burt Visotzky – New York, NY
Rabbi Andrew Vogel – Brookline, MA
Rabbi Moshe Waldoks – Brookline, MA
Rabbi Sue Ann Wasserman – Waltham, MA
Rabbi Abi Weber – Philadelphia, PA
Rabbi Elyse Wechterman – Abington, PA
Rabbi Scott Weiner – New Rochelle, NY
Rabbi Jay Weinstein – Huntington, NY
Rabbi Simkha Weintraub – Philadelphia, PA
Rabbi Samuel Weintraub – Brooklyn, NY
Rabbi Max Weiss – Oak Park, IL
Rabbi Ora Weiss – Newton Center, MA
Rabbi Zari Weiss – Seattle, WA
Rabbi Alex Weissman – Providence, RI
Rabbi Josh Whinston – Ann Arbor, MI
Rabbi Zachary Wiener – Chicago, IL
Rabbi Nancy H Wiener – New York, NY
Rabbi Avi Winokur – Haddonfield, NJ
Rabbi David Wirtschafter – Lexington, KY
Rabbi Ari Witkin – Huntington Woods, MI
Rabbi Joseph Wolf – Portland, OR
Rabbi Greg Wolfe – Davis, CA
Rabbi Michal Woll – Milwaukee, WI
Rabbi Eric Woodward – New Haven, CT
Rabbi Sara Zacharia – New York, NY
Rabbi Danny Zemel – Washington, DC
Rabbi Jonathan Zimet – Philadelphia, PA
Rabbi Jonathan D Zimet – Poughkeepsie, NY
Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz – Port Washington, NY
Rabbi Henry Zoob – Westwood, MA
Cantor Michael Zoosman – College Park, MD
