Since Hamas’s October 7, 2023, onslaught, violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank has surged to record levels. Now, concerns are growing that IDF units tasked with protecting civilians and thwarting attacks on Palestinians are manned by some of those allegedly behind the violence.

Rights groups and legal experts charge that the IDF’s regional defense reserve units, known by the Hebrew acronym “Hagmar,” are blurring the line between civilian settlers and military personnel, using the army’s authority to compound already rampant violence while escaping accountability thanks to the gray zone they inhabit.

The units are tasked with responding to security incidents in and around the communities where they are based and are heavily staffed by local residents serving in reserve duty.

According to Yesh Din, which tracks settler violence, seven Palestinians were shot dead by soldiers serving in Hagmar units during the 40-day war with Iran alone.

The issue has recently drawn the attention of Israeli authorities. Last month, the military said it was investigating the conduct of soldiers in several incidents involving settler violence, while police announced parallel investigations into suspected crimes committed by settlers.

In one of the most serious recent cases, the IDF said it was probing soldiers who allegedly stood by as masked Israeli settlers torched vehicles in the Palestinian village of Shuqba, near Ramallah, last month. Border Police later arrested four Israeli civilians and a reservist serving in a Hagmar unit on suspicion of participating in the attack. The reservist’s weapon was confiscated and he was suspended from reserve duty pending the investigation.

In March, a settler serving in a Hagmar unit opened fire on an Israeli paraglider in the West Bank after mistakenly suspecting a terrorist infiltration. On the same day, another Hagmar reservist allegedly fired at Palestinian homes in the al-Arroub refugee camp north of Hebron before being detained by the IDF.

The incidents are part of what critics describe as a broader pattern. Dozens of Hagmar soldiers have reportedly been dismissed in recent years for violations, including attacks on Palestinians. The IDF has recently reduced the number of active Hagmar personnel in the West Bank, an unspoken admission of the issues that surround their expanded roles.

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir has condemned settler violence. In March, he called attacks against Palestinian civilians and soldiers in the West Bank “morally and ethically unacceptable” and a major strategic impediment.

But critics say he must do more to clamp down on units armed by the IDF and operating under his command structure that have not only failed to rein in settler extremist violence, but in many cases participated in it as well.

‘They simply see an Arab and stop him’

The rise of the Hagmar units has dovetailed with a period in which settler violence has reached new heights, with numerous claims of soldiers either participating in violent actions or declining to act against settlers even as attacks are taking place.

For Palestinians living near settlements, incidents of misconduct by Hagmar soldiers are not merely statistics — they are their daily reality.

Saeed Awad, a resident of the Palestinian village of Abu Shaban in the South Hebron Hills, told The Times of Israel that violence by settlers increased dramatically after October 7. Before the war, he said, Palestinians could at least expect security forces to conduct a preliminary investigation after attacks by settlers.

“It wasn’t great, but it was something,” he said.

Today, however, the first responders are often Hagmar soldiers themselves.

According to Awad, those soldiers frequently protect — and sometimes actively assist — settler perpetrators, allegations echoed in testimonies collected by the NGO Breaking the Silence from soldiers who served in the West Bank.

“They’re wearing military clothing. They carry M16 rifles, and they show up to these incidents,” one anonymous soldier told the organization. “It’s obvious which side they’re on, and it’s obvious they wouldn’t hesitate to use their weapons and intimidate people.”

The soldier recounted one incident involving an individual described as a well-known violent settler. The unnamed figure, he said, had “gone wild,” apparently harassing Palestinians, while dressed in IDF fatigues and carrying a rifle issued through the regional defense unit. According to the testimony, the settler “did whatever he wanted” while other Hagmar personnel were present at the scene.

Meanwhile, Awad said he has been detained by troops, often from Hagmar units, six........

© The Times of Israel