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Israeli death squads in Palestine

Saturday, 09 April 2016 7:30 AM [ Last Update: Saturday, 09 April 2016 9:37 AM ]

Palestinian students hold an anti-Israel protest near the settlement of Beit Hagai at the southern entrance to the occupied West Bank city of al-Khalil (Hebron), on October 18, 2015. ©AFP

The mistaravim are Israel’s undercover forces; they are often seen attacking and arresting Palestinian protesters and stopping demonstrations.

During the recent Israeli-Palestinian confrontations in the West Bank and Jerusalem, media outlets have filmed what appear to be armed civilians arresting and handing Palestinian demonstrators over to the Israeli military.

These men, called mistaravim, wear Arab clothing to look like Palestinians as they carry out undercover missions against and sometimes kill Palestinians wanted by the Israeli military.

The mistaravim are increasingly intervening at the entrances to Palestinian cities and near Israeli settlements, points of friction between both sides.

On October 7, 2015, the mistaravim could be clearly seen in confrontations between Israeli forces and Birzeit University students, and again at demonstrations near the Beit El settlement in northern Ramallah.

Although there are no reliable estimates available, Ghassan Da’ar’s book "Mistaravim: Israeli Death Squads" (2005) estimated the mistaravim killed 422 Palestinians between 1988 and 2004.

Recently, the mistaravim have taken to standing in the front rows of demonstrators, yards away from the Israeli soldiers at the entrances of West Bank cities.

The mistaravim throw stones at the soldiers and take shelter behind large barricades from the tear gas and rubber bullets.

But then, suddenly, they step away from the demonstrators, pull out pistols and fire at them. The mistaravim arrest people as the soldiers join them and pull the demonstrators into military vehicles.

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