Settler leaders demand Palestinian travel ban on West Bank road after attack

Settler leaders call on the government to close down West Bank highways to Palestinian traffic in response to today’s attack at the Assaf Junction, the second such shooting in less than a week in the central West Bank.

“I demand that the prime minister deal with terrorism as is necessary,” says Yisrael Ganz, the chairman of the Binyamin Regional Council where the attack took place.

“The first step must be a total and immediate ban on the Arab population’s travel on Route 60,” he adds, referring to the West Bank’s main north-south artery.

“I call on the political echelon to rethink the open-road policy [in the West Bank],” said Beit El Local Council chairman Shai Alon.

“It is inconceivable that week after week we will endure shooting attacks with fatalities on the roads. The roads must be closed to the Palestinians immediately,” he says.

Hananel Dorani, the chairman of the Yesha settlement umbrella council, calls for the sealing of all entrances to the Palestinian city of Ramallah, and Samaria Regional Council chairman Yossi Dagan calls for the re-institution of dozens of IDF checkpoints throughout the West Bank that the army has gradually removed over the years.