Justice Minister Tzipi Livni (Hatnuah) has met twice in recent weeks with prominent settler leaders to discuss “price tag” attacks carried out by extremist settlers against Palestinians and their property in the West Bank, along with other targets such as Israel Defense Forces bases and churches.

At the meetings, Livni emphasized her intention to take stern measures against such attacks and their perpetrators, and asked for the settler leaders' support, according to a Justice Ministry source.

Among the settler leaders that Livni met with were Dani Dayan, a former chairman of the Yesha Council of settlements (the settlers' representative body), Ze’ev (Zambish) Hever, secretary-general of the Amana movement, which develops and helps maintain settlement communities, and Avi Roeh, current Yesha Council chairman. Hever himself was attacked by so-called price tag activists.

According to the Justice Ministry source, Livni and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu coordinated their positions on the response to price-tag attacks ahead of her meeting with the settler leaders. Livni made it clear to them that she intends to throw her full weight behind the fight against these acts violence and vandalism.

“Price-tag actions harm Israeli society as a whole," Livni said at the meeting. They "go against Israel's democratic values and represent benighted racism,” she said.

Livni went on to say that such attacks “incite and lead to violence." She added that while these actions once were limited to the West Bank, today they are occurring across the country.

Livni told the settler leaders that Justice Ministry officials have begun discussing ways to step up the fight against price tag actions. She said she aims to provide the Shin Bet security service, Israel Police and the State Prosecutor’s Office more effective tools for apprehending and trying perpetrators of price tag attacks. She also seeks to toughen the punishment for such actions.

One way to ramp up the struggle against price tag attacks is to classify their perpetrators as terrorists. This would allow the police and Shin Bet to take harsher measures, similar to those taken against Palestinian terror suspects. The Shin Bet had recommended defining price tag actions as terror attacks, but Prime Minister Netanyahu objected.

Dani Dayan confirmed to Haaretz that he attended the meeting with Livni but declined to elaborate on specific details.

Open gallery view A Palestinian mosque vandalized in a 'price-tag' attack in the West Bank village of Jaba, June 19, 2012. Credit: Shirat Granot