Pro-Government Militias

Pro-Government Militia Website

Settlers (Israel)

Basic Group Information

Name assigned by coder: no
PGM ID Number: 304
Country: Israel
Date formed: June 25, 1981
    Accuracy of date formed: year
Details of Formation: The government authorised an added 'civil guard unit' in 1991
Date dissolved: Unknown
    Accuracy of date dissolved: day
Details of Termination:
Termination Type(s): none

Former and Successor Group Information

Predecessor group(s): none
Successor group(s): none
Private Military Company? no
Former Group? no
    Former Armed Group? no
Former Rebel Group? no
    Former Rebel Group UCDP ID: none
PGM Becomes Rebel Group? no information
    Successor Rebel Group UCDP ID: none

Government Relation, Support, and Training

Government Relation: semi-official (type 2)
Created by the Government?: no
    Main Creating Government Institution: none
Government Link(s): state (institution)
    If link to party, name of party: None
Training and Equipment: yes
Shared Information and Joint Operations: yes
Shared Personnel: no information
Type(s) of Material Support: domestic government
State Sponsor(s): none
Other Connection(s):

Group Characteristics

Membership: religious; ideology; village/rural
Primary Membership: local
Alternative Primary Membership: no information
Location: Occupied Territories
Force Strength: [20000, unknown]
Target(s): rebels, insurgents, or other armed group; ethnic group
Purpose(s): self-defense and security

Ethnic Characteristics

Ethnic Target(s): Israeli Arabs (Israel); Palestinian Arabs (Israel)
    Quality of Information for Ethnic Targeting: given
Ethnic Membership: none
    Quality of Information for Ethnic Membership: not applicable
Ethnic Purpose: none
    Quality of Information for Ethnic Purpose: not applicable

Other Information

Other Information: Note that they are located in the Occupied Territories and not in Israel. Added 'civil guard' unit in 1991. 20000 armed males estimated in 1994.

New Variables from Meta-Analysis

Purpose

Purpose: The Israeli government armed Israeli civilians to defend themselves against the Palestine Liberation Organization and civilian Palestinians. Settlers were living in the Israeli-occupied areas in the West Bank and acted as vigilante groups.
Relative Benefit(s) of PGM Use faster mobilization

Treatment of Civilians

Treatment of Civilians: The militia members behaved violently against Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied territories. Incidents include attacks against Palestinian journalists, farmers and car drivers. Their behavior was tolerated and supported by the government as it was in line with the government’s interests in defending the occupied territories.
Type(s) of Violence against Civilians: kidnapping/abductions; killing

Reasons for Membership

PGM Members Coerced? no
PGM Members Paid? no
Reasons for Membership: Settlers in the Israeli-occupied territories were under Israeli military rule, not Israeli law and therefore automatically became government agents to secure Israel’s ownership of the territories.
PGM Members Killed? rarely

PGM Size

Size: It is estimated that about a quarter of Jewish settlers carried automatic rifles. This means there are about 20,000 militia members.

Weapons and Training

Weapons and Training: Settlers were armed with automatic rifles. Furthermore, there is a source reporting on the use of teargas by settlers.

Organisation

Organisation: Israeli settlers had official permission to carry arms, while Palestinian had no authorization. The government emphasized that the militiamen were subject to military control and were only allowed to use violence for self-defense. In 1991, the government allowed the armed Settlers to carry out police operations such as patrolling the streets. In 2004/5, there are first reports on the government’s plan to disarm the Settlers and to replace them by paid security personnel. Nonetheless, evidence of operations by the militia exists until 2014.

Reference(s) for Meta-Analysis

Information was taken from news sources listed in the PGMD.

Evidence