IDF soldier punished for urging settlers toward prohibited area

An IDF soldier was temporarily relieved of his duties Monday after he disobeyed orders and encouraged Jewish settlers to cross an army checkpoint in the West Bank.

The soldier, an Orthodox resident of the hard-line settlement of Yitzhar, apparently told the group they could cross into a Palestinian-controlled area of the West Bank, despite high tensions following the fatal firebombing of a home in a nearby Palestinian village.

He has since apologized, according to reports.

Fearing a backlash of violence following the deadly attack by suspected Jewish extremists on a Palestinian family on Friday, the army placed additional checkpoints across the West Bank over the weekend.

On Saturday night, a group of 20 Jewish settlers approached one of the temporary barriers on the Alon Road north of Jerusalem with the intention of crossing into a Palestinian controlled area of the West Bank when they were turned away by an on-duty policewoman.

According to reports in Hebrew language media, the settlers intended to confront residents of a nearby Palestinian village.

The soldier, who was also on checkpoint duty at the time, interjected telling the settlers not to listen to the policewoman, and said they were allowed to cross the barrier.

The soldier and policewoman exchanged words over the incident, and ultimately, the group did not pass through the checkpoint.

The IDF was notified of the incident and after hearing eyewitness accounts, his superior officers found the soldier guilty of disobeying orders. His battalion commander decided to temporarily dismiss him from combat duty and sentenced him to 28 days of on-base detention.

Israeli soldiers typically get weekend leave every two to three weeks of active duty.

In response, the army said the soldier’s actions were “inconsistent with the the values of the IDF, and he interfered with the carrying out of orders by security forces.”