US officials tell Jews: Colleyville was a ‘terror attack on Jewish community’

washinGton (jta) – top united states security officials told jewish americans on a pre-shabbat call that the attack last saturday in colleyville, texas, was a “terrorist attack on the jewish community” and that authorities are continuing to investigate how the British islamist who held a rabbi and three congregants hostage got into the country.

the webinar on Friday at noon, organized by the white house, drew at least 5,000 viewers, white house jewish liaison chanan weissman said at its outset. it was designed in part to reassure jews that they could attend services this shabbat. among those speaking was the temple Beth israel rabbi held hostage during the 11-hour crisis, charlie cytron-walker.

it also was clearly aimed at rolling back the impression conveyed in the immediate aftermath of the attack by an FBi official that authorities were not treating this as an antisemitic attack.

“while there is still a lot of unknown details, we are committed to thoroughly investigating saturday’s attack,” said jill sanborn, the executive assistant director of the national security Branch of the FBi. “Let me be clear: the FBi is and has been treating saturday’s events as an act of terrorism targeting the jewish community.”

sanborn said the FBi was looking through phone and other electronic media to track why the hostage-taker specifically chose the synagogue.

“this was not a random occurrence,” she said. “it was intentional and it was symbolic.

vehicle on fire. It’s possible to hear one of the activists say, “You are going to kill us.”

The left-wing group Yesh Din said that “the settlers dispersed into multiple groups” to go after the activists.

Seven activists were wounded, Manor said.

“They were taken to Beilinson Hospital. Two were diagnosed with limb fractures from the beatings of the settlers’ sticks and several others suffered head injuries,” he said.

The IDF said it had received a report about settlers from the nearby outpost of Givat Ronen, but that the incident was over by the time they arrived.

Police said they were investigating the matter and that it planned to send a forensic team to the area, adding they would deal “harshly” with the perpetrators once they were caught.

Burin has been the scene of a number of attacks by settlers and Jewish extremists that have been caught on video, including incidents in which settlers can be seen throwing stones at homes.

“The Givat Ronen outpost is one of the five outposts where most settler violence takes place,” the left-wing NGO Peace Now said in a statement.

In a rare move, the Yesha Council, which is the political arm of the settlement movement, condemned the attack.

The photos are “shocking,” it stated. “Such behavior is contrary to the values of the people of Israel and harms the settlements.

“This is not our way,” the council said. “We call on the security forces to investigate the incident and bring the rioters to justice.”

According to the UN, there were 496 attacks by settlers or Jewish extremists against Palestinians in 2021, of which 126 resulted in physical harm.

That is an increase of 39% from 2020, when there were 358 such incidents, including 84 in which Palestinians were harmed.

The Israel Police have not published data on such attacks.

Data is published on Palestinian violence against Israeli civilians, however. According to the IDF, there were 2,137 stoning incidents against Israeli civilians in 2021, and 229 incidents involving Molotov cocktails.

That’s an increase from 2020, when there were 1,500 stoning incidents, with the number of Molotov cocktails incidents remaining the same.

Two Israeli citizens were killed in the West Bank by Palestinian terrorists in 2021; one was killed in 2020.

The settler attack outside Burin came just days after Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations Gilad Erdan downplayed the issue of settler violence to the Security Council, explaining that they were the “exception to the rule.”

When such incidents do occur, he said, they are probed, investigated and condemned.

But the Left has accused Bennett’s government of failing to speak up and take action on the matter, adding that there has been little enforcement and few arrests.

Last month, Public Security Minister Omer Bar Lev (Labor) was rebuked for calling such attackers “sub-human.” Bennett spoke up in defense of the settlers, calling those who were violent as a fringe element.

“Once again we see violent crime on the part of groups of lawbreakers, sitting in illegal outposts,” he tweeted on Friday. “This is same violence that is directed almost daily at Palestinian residents.”

MK Mossi Raz, whose Meretz Party is part of the coalition, said that “Settler violence is rampant, and government ministers are not doing enough to stop it. This difficult event will not pass by silently.”

Raz wrote a letter to Bar Lev and his deputy, Yesh Atid MK Yoav Segalovitz, demanding their condemnation of settler violence, as well as stricter law enforcement in the West Bank.

“All violence, whether it is against Israelis or Palestinians, must be highly condemned, and every necessary measure should be taken to stop criminals before they commit the acts of violence,” the letter reads.

Peace Now said that, “When the political leadership backs off and the government bends over, it’s no wonder that violence continues to rage. The Defense Minister [Benny Gantz] must order the evacuation of the illegal outposts that are the center of settler violence.”

Communications Minister MK Yoav Hendel (New Hope) said that such violence was above politics and should not be tolerated in any sector.

“There must be law and order in every place.”