A revolt and a king: The ideology behind Jewish terrorism
Jewish terror group believes the State of Israel has no right to exist, and is working to overthrow the government; Arabs, they say, have no place in Israel, and it is therefore permissible to kill them.
Members of the Jewish "Revolt" terror group believe that the State of Israel has no right to exist and that there is no place for Arabs in the Jewish kingdom they will establish, so it is permissible to kill them.
Several of the members of this group were indicted on Sunday morning for the murder of the Dawabsheh family, including 21-year-old Amiram Ben-Uliel and a 17-year-old Israeli-American teenager, as well as for other acts of violence perpetrated against Palestinians.
The Shin Bet said Ben-Uliel admitted to planning and perpetrating the attack, and recounted it last month during a reconstruction of the crime. His version supported concealed evidence and other investigative details.
The Shin Bet has arrested 23 members of the "Revolt" group since November 25, when the investigation into the arson in Duma became known. The group's hardcore element numbers at 30-40 people, most of whom are between the ages of 15-24, though there are some as young as 13.
Most of the group's members reside in the Shiloh bloc and other areas in the Samaria region of the West Bank. They have come to the area from all over the country, and not just from the territories.
The Shin Bet says there has been an increase in the number of youths who want to join the group in its actions since the Duma arson attack.
According to the Shin Bet, the "Revolt" group's ideology started taking shape in October 2013. Since that time and until the Duma attack, its members committed 11 arson attacks against Palestinians or churches.
Since the beginning of the investigation, some of the members of the group have been indicted. Many have received administrative orders barring them from entering the West Bank, Jerusalem, or other areas and the Shin Bet has conducted night-time raids to arrest suspects. In addition, several of the youth have been put under administrative house arrest and four of them were put under administrative detention. The Judea and Samaria District Police also established a special force to aid the IDF in its military operations.
"Starting in October 2013, a new anti-Zionist ideology has begun taking shape among the hilltop youth, with the objective of changing the government 'that stops us from building the Temple, and prevents us from reaching the true redemption,'" the Shin Bet said.
This ideology was formulated by veteran hilltop youth, including Rabbi Meir Kahane's grandson, Meir Ettinger, who is currently under administrative detention.
The "Revolt" group seeks to overthrow the democratic government and establish "Jewish rule" in the land of Israel.
The Jewish state envisioned by the "Revolt" group is a monarchy that would include religious coercion and a king who would eradicate idol worship, build the third Temple and expel all gentiles.
The Shin Bet seized manifestos detailing the "Revolt" group's ideology:
- The State of Israel has no right to exist, and we are therefore not bound by the rules of the game.
- Destroy everything first, and then rebuild.
- A king must be crowned after the overthrow of the government.
- Under the current foreign rule, we must set up cells in every settlement, hill, city and yeshiva, made of 3-5 members who decide to act.
- The cell can begin with small acts. There must be no contact between the cells.
- Don't tell, don't investigate, and don't make inquiries.
- There is no room for gentiles, particularly Arabs, to live inside the borders of the state, and if they do not leave here it is permissible to kill them indiscriminately - women, men and children.
- The blood of those who are not Jews will always be cheaper than the blood of Jews.
These manifestos also detail how to commit terror attacks: "Simply break a glass door or window, pour gasoline inside or light a Molotov cocktail and throw it in however possible. Of course the first thing you do is spray (graffiti) after deciding on a home to target, so as to not delay the escape."
The Shin Bet was unable to identify a set hierarchy within the "Revolt" group or terror cells organized by any higher authority.
"There's no need for authorization, coordination and synchronization between the groups, and they hold their meetings all over the country, not just in Judea and Samaria. The people who came to set fire to a house with people inside knew they were not going to commit an arson attack or an attempted murder - they were there to commit murder," the Shin Bet said.
The Shin Bet also said that in recent weeks, members of the group have been trying to find out where officials from the defense and legal system, who are involved in the investigation, live and where their children go to school, "in order to send a message."
"There are dozens of members who are still out there and could commit an attack even tonight, and that is why our operations continue," the Shin Bet said. "There's an intelligence difficulty in identifying people who leave their homes, march for 700 meters, and decide to commit an attack in a village using simple measures."
"Some of these people have cut ties with their families, and are living a simple life in outposts, herding sheep and doing agricultural work. They learned how not to cooperate in interrogations and pray instead of cooperating," the Shin Bet added.
The Shin Bet responded to claims that they have not invested sufficient effort in combating nationally-motivated crimes committed by Jews: "We don't drag our feet; we used all the tools at our disposal. The legal system doesn't always treat violations of administrative orders with enough severity, and the suspects are released over and over again. But now there's a process to rectify the legislation, which will allow the use of electronic bracelets inside the State of Israel."
The agency also responded to claims about the lack of transparency in the investigation: "We appeared in court over 120 times since the end of November to present the materials and suspicions being examined, for supervision and approval. The claims of torture, such as sexual harassment or the use of a Procrustean bed, are false and baseless. We acted in our investigation out of the understanding that another attack will lead to further escalation in the security situation."
