In his inauguration speech on Monday, President Donald Trump said he wanted to be known as “a peacemaker and a unifier” in his second term, before applauding his own efforts of securing a ceasefire between Hamas and Israel, as well as the return of three Israeli hostages from Gaza.

But later that day, amid a rush of executive orders, Trump seemed to betray his own vision of peace. He lifted Biden-era sanctions aimed at curbing Israeli settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank. He also rescinded a policy that had blocked sanctions against the International Criminal Court, putting those who try to hold the U.S. and its allies accountable for war crimes at risk of a new round of financial penalties.

Within hours of lifting the sanctions, Israeli settlers attacked Jinasfut, a Palestinian village in the West Bank, injuring at least 21 Palestinians and setting fire to homes, cars, a nursery, and workshop, according to village officials. Despite the ceasefire, the Israeli military had been raiding homes and mosques, detaining dozens of Palestinians across the occupied territory, including children and journalists.

And on Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu launched a new military operation into the northern West Bank city of Jenin and an adjoined refugee camp where several Palestinian militant groups are based. The Israeli offensive, backed by drones and helicopters, killed at least 10 Palestinians — including a 16-year-old boy — and wounded 35 others, health officials said. The campaign is known as “Operation Iron Wall,” an apparent reference to the Zionist writings of Ze’ev Jabotinsky that argued for the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians to secure an Israeli state.

“It was all political theater.”

Experts were quick to note that the rise in Israeli military attacks in the West Bank shouldn’t be viewed in isolation from the ceasefire in Gaza. It’s a continuation, they say, of a broader campaign; some view it as Netanyahu’s attempt to appease extremists in his Cabinet and in Israel........

© The Intercept