When an American citizen from Ohio becomes a test of Israeli governance

About two weeks ago, in an interview at the Channel 14 studios where Defense Minister Israel Katz was asked about issuing administrative orders to right-wing activists suspected of ongoing terrorist activity, we witnessed an unusual confrontation between him and the Central Command Chief, Eyal Zamir, regarding the order against Tal Yinon Dardik, who is being held in detention on suspicion of abusing Palestinians. The attempt by the political echelon to publicly criticize a senior officer, whose purpose is fulfilling his duty as the sovereign in charge of security and order, raises concern among those who seek to maintain statehood. Where the political echelon is supposed to back its officers who implement a balanced security policy, political considerations sometimes take priority over operational needs.

Against the backdrop of the silence of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the face of Katz's words, the position of former Prime Minister and former Secretary General of the Yesha Council, Naftali Bennett, stands out, as he is not afraid to tell the truth even during an election period. In an interview on 103fm, when asked if he supports the return of administrative detentions against settlers in Judea and Samaria, he replied firmly: "Where it is relevant yes, where it is not relevant no, I am not afraid of it."

However, the consequences of this conduct seep into the field and create a complex reality with our great ally. For days, Palestinian families in Qusra have been under siege by settlers who established an outpost near their homes and blocked access. Luai Abu Ridi, a US citizen and homeowner in the besieged area of Qusra, said that since the outpost was established, his brother and son have been besieged and cut off from the village: "The real danger is to my brother. He is not receiving food or water. For three days he has been completely cut off from the village."

The consequences of this situation reach the desks of decision-makers in Washington. Under the Trump administration, the scenes from the field are received with deep concern. Abu Ridi has activated the US Congress in this regard. The rise in extremist settler violence is making waves in the American media and politics; the Ambassador in Washington, Yechiel Leiter, who wears a kippah and lived in Judea and Samaria, does not stop warning about the loss of friends.

Within this fabric, the status of Vice President J.D. Vance stands out. When news about the family of an American citizen from Ohio who is under siege in the heart of an area under Israeli control reaches his office, it becomes a dramatic catalyst for action for him and other key players in the White House. Ambassador Mike Huckabee, a Christian Zionist evangelical, called the settlers involved in this "Jewish terrorists" and demanded they be expelled. Previously, the US Ambassador to Israel defined the violence in Judea and Samaria as "acts of terror," warning of its cumulative damage. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has also spoken sharply on the subject of settler violence, demanding substantive action.

These phenomena expose a grim reality in which the trust of our most important ideological base — the Christian-Zionist right in America, which believes in Judea and Samaria, — is cracking. J.D. Vance, a former Senator from Ohio, is currently marked as one of the leading leaders of the Republican Party. He sees this reality through the eyes of a mission. If the leadership in Israel continues to confront the commanders in the field instead of enforcing the law, we are approaching a point where we will lose the ability to defend the legitimacy of the conduct in Judea and Samaria and will drag the critical strategic alliance with the United States down a dangerous slope.

Dr. Kobi Barda, Senior Researcher, JPPI | Multidisciplinary School, Holon Institute of Technology (HIT)