JERUSALEM - On Monday, thousands of Israelis marched to an evacuated Jewish outpost in the West Bank to support settlements that are regarded as illegal by international law, including ministers in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing government.
Israelis from all over the country traveled to the outpost of Evyatar while waving Israeli flags and chanting religious songs and slogans during the Passover holiday week as tensions between Israelis and Palestinians increased.
According to the Palestinian Red Crescent, Israeli forces opened fire on Palestinian protesters in the nearby town of Beita who were hurling stones with rubber bullets and tear gas, injuring 17 people with rubber bullet wounds and two with gas canister wounds to the head.
The Samaria Regional Council, which speaks for the settlers in the northern West Bank, quoted its leader Yossi Dagan as saying that settlements were the solution to what he called a "wave of terror."
At the Israeli demonstration, Itamar Ben-Gvir, the far-right security chief in Netanyahu's cabinet, said: "Now they understand why I have been pushing for the establishment of a national guard."
Ben-Gvir was given permission last week to lead a national guard focused on Arab unrest while being surrounded by heavy guard on Monday.
After political rivals expressed concern the force could turn into a sectarian militia, Netanyahu postponed giving him a direct command.
Hospital officials announced on Monday that the mother of the two Israeli sisters who were killed in a shooting last week in the occupied West Bank had passed away from her injuries. They were all dual citizens of Israel and the United Kingdom.
Following the heinous attacks in the West Bank, the tragic news that Leah Dee has also passed away was tweeted by British Foreign Minister James Cleverly. Leah and her daughters, Maia and Rina, were killed, and there is no excuse for it.
The Israeli police were still looking for the attacker.
The extreme right-wing Israeli government, which took office in late December, is in favor of the acceptance and growth of Jewish settlements on Palestinian territory in the West Bank, where they envision a future independent state.
By amending a 2005 law that ordered their evacuation, the Israeli parliament last month made it possible for Jewish settlers to return to four settlements in the West Bank. This action was denounced by the Palestinian Authority and the European Union.
Eight unauthorized West Bank outposts received retroactive recognition from Israel in February, which was denounced by international organizations. These did not include Evyatar.
Statehood negotiations facilitated by the United States have been stagnant since 2014 as Jewish settlements have grown.