Mainstream Media Shocked: Settler Violence, Again!
The story of a masked man bludgeoning an elderly Palestinian woman during the olive harvest in Turmus Ayya isn't just an 'attack,' as Al-Monitor frames it. This is a recurring, systemic feature of the occupation, meticulously documented by human rights groups for decades. While the media occasionally 'discovers' such brutality when U.S. journalists film it, the pattern is clear: settler violence,
often unchallenged by Israeli forces, acts as a de facto land annexation tool. This year alone, the UN reported a significant increase in settler attacks, with over 1,180 incidents from October 2022 to September 2023. We're meant to gasp at the 'shocking' footage, yet overlook the continuous flow of U.S. aid that enables the occupation sustaining this very violence. No wonder a blind eye is turned
when Congress, heavily influenced by pro-Israel lobbying, votes to send billions more in military assistance. The real story isn't one isolated 'incident,' but the consistent normalization of brutality against Palestinians, presented as unfortunate events rather than an outcome of a deeply entrenched, internationally condemned occupation.