Clinging to a barren hillside, the “Baladim” outpost was little more than a solitary trailer, a farming tractor, a makeshift tent for shade, and a flock of goats.
But Israeli security authorities say Baladim and other hilltop outposts served as a base for a new generation of Jewish militants, disaffected youths who allegedly vandalized Holy Land churches and carried out a deadly arson attack in the nearby Palestinian village of Duma on July 31. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denounced the attack, which killed Saad Dawabsha and his 18-month-old son Ali, as an act of “Jewish terrorism.”
In just a few hours last Thursday, the police and the army cleared the Baladim encampment and two other outposts nearby. It was part of a weeks-long crackdown on so-called “price tag” vigilantism meant to punish both Palestinians and Israeli security forces for moves against the settlements.
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