A far-right member of the Israeli parliament has badly damaged a Palestinian memorial with a sledgehammer in the occupied West Bank, triggering widespread condemnation from across the political spectrum in Israel and raising fresh concerns about settler violence in the territory.
Video footage showed Zvi Sukkot, a member of the far-right Religious Zionism party, and several companions striking the stone monument in Madama, a Palestinian village in the northern West Bank. In the video, Sukkot — who has a history of provocative anti-Palestinian acts — declared: "This is something we cannot leave standing here, because any place that glorifies terrorism, we must remove it." He later said he had first requested that the army act to remove memorials in Madama and a nearby village, and when no action was taken, decided to go himself. The memorial, erected in 2008, honours Palestinians killed in the 1968 Battle of Karameh — a confrontation between Israeli forces and PLO and Jordanian fighters — as well as those who died in the first and second intifadas. The head of Madama's village council described it as a monument to all those killed in conflict with Israel, regardless of political affiliation.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed its soldiers were present during the incident, saying the military had approved a tour of monuments in the area for Sukkot and was providing security. However, the IDF said the lawmaker and his group had acted "in a deceptive and manipulative manner," diverting troops from priority missions and endangering soldiers already under significant operational pressure. Soldiers eventually stopped Sukkot and escorted his group out of the village after reporting the incident to their commanders — though in several past episodes of settler violence, soldiers have been filmed standing by without intervening.
The political fallout has been swift and broad. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office called the act "reprehensible," stressing that taking the law into one's own hands "prevents the IDF from focusing on its missions." Opposition figure Gadi Eisenkot, described as Netanyahu's main rival ahead of upcoming general elections, called Sukkot's behaviour "a disgrace" and accused the prime minister of allowing "anarchists" to act freely, endangering settlements and damaging Israel's international standing. Former IDF chief of staff Dan Haloutz went further, accusing the military command of having turned a blind eye to the provocation. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who leads the Religious Zionism party, deflected criticism, accusing the left-wing opposition of rushing to condemn Sukkot rather than focusing on what he called terrorism.
The incident comes amid a broader deterioration of security in the West Bank, where settler attacks on Palestinians have increased sharply in recent months, drawing sustained international condemnation. Madama itself has been targeted in several such attacks. Israel's most senior military commander in the West Bank reportedly warned Prime Minister Netanyahu in a closed-door meeting that mounting settler violence risked igniting a major escalation — a warning this latest episode is likely to amplify.