Former Israeli intelligence official Michael Milshtein warned that settler violence and government policy are driving the occupied West Bank toward permanent conflict.
Key Takeaways
- Michael Milshtein said the “era of the miracle” protecting violent settler incursions has ended.
- He argued Smotrich’s “revolution” seeks to erase Palestinian villages and expand settlements.
- Milshtein warned violence against Palestinians has become normalized.
- He said the policies are damaging Israel internationally while undermining normalization with Arab states.
A former senior Israeli military intelligence official has warned that escalating settler violence and government-backed settlement expansion are pushing the occupied West Bank toward permanent conflict, ethnic cleansing, and growing international isolation.
Writing in the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth, Michael Milshtein, the former head of the Palestinian Affairs desk in Israeli Military Intelligence, argued that the “era of the miracle” protecting violent settler incursions into Palestinian communities has come to an end.
His remarks come amid a sharp escalation in the occupied West Bank following the deadly resistance operation near the illegal Havat Gilad settlement and a series of settler attacks on Palestinian towns and villages.
‘The Era of the Miracle Is Ending’
Milshtein referenced recent remarks by Israeli Central Command chief Maj. Gen. Avi Bluth, who said it was a “miracle” that repeated violent settler incursions into Palestinian villages had not resulted in Israelis being killed or kidnapped.
“It seems that the era of the miracle is ending,” Milshtein wrote.
He argued that the recent attack near Havat Gilad occurred in the context of settlers’ “conscious pursuit of friction” with Palestinians, “often while using violence,” adding that these actions enjoy the backing of senior government officials led by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich.
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Smotrich’s ‘Revolution’
Milshtein argued that the violence is part of a broader political project promoted by Smotrich and his allies.
“The leaders of the ‘revolution,’ headed by Smotrich, explain their real objective: to erase Palestinian villages (’empty them, as was done in the refugee camps in northern Samaria,’ the minister explained), and wage an all-out war against the Palestinian Authority,” he wrote.
He noted that these proposals are presented as security measures despite the fact that, “from a security standpoint… the situation is the most stable it has been in years.”
Milshtein also questioned the rationale behind repeated settler incursions into Palestinian villages, asking whether such actions genuinely contribute to Israel’s security or merely ignite another front at a time of mounting regional tensions.
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Violence Has Become ‘the Norm’
The former intelligence official warned that a dangerous ideological transformation is taking place in the occupied West Bank.
“A unique ethos is developing in the West Bank that seeks to become the national condition,” he wrote.
According to Milshtein, this new reality includes “the sanctification of the idea of ‘more territory,’ motivated by religious beliefs disguised as strategic arguments; the adoption of a value system in which violence against Palestinians is the norm; and the entrenchment of war as a permanent condition.”
He argued that this ideology is increasingly shaping Israeli policy despite reflecting the views of only part of Israeli society.
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‘Apartheid State’
Milshtein also warned that the current trajectory is damaging Israel’s international standing.
“Jewish violence in the West Bank strengthens Israel’s image as an ‘apartheid state,’ providing ammunition to all those who support the ideas of BDS and deny the state’s very existence,” he wrote.
He dismissed arguments that international criticism can simply be attributed to antisemitism, describing such responses as ineffective.
The former intelligence official added that ongoing violence in the occupied West Bank is also pushing normalization with Arab countries further out of reach, as regional governments continue to link normalization to progress on the Palestinian issue.
💢 Israeli settlers set mosque ablaze in Qasra, south of Nablus
Israeli settlers have attacked the town of Qasra, in the northern occupied West Bank, setting fire to a mosque and spray-painting racist slogans on its walls. pic.twitter.com/k6DwBwL802
— Drop Site (@DropSiteNews) July 26, 2026
Warning Ahead of Elections
Milshtein concluded by arguing that developments in the occupied West Bank must become a central issue in Israel’s upcoming election campaign.
He warned that further annexation, intensified action against the Palestinian Authority, and the displacement of Palestinian communities could follow if coalition leaders conclude such policies will strengthen their political standing.
Calling for a broader public debate, Milshtein cautioned that Israel risks deepening both its internal divisions and its international isolation if what he described as Smotrich’s “revolution” continues unchecked.
(Israeli Media, PC)
Milshtein was born yesterday. What rock was he hiding under, and on what planet for the past 80 years? And his advice is to dial-down the genocide just a tiny bit, and nobody will notice and forget? This is what you get for a spectrum of opinion among Israelis? I think the toilet bowl is past the full-flush threshold. too late.