The boundary between the settlements and the army, which was blurred in any case before the war, was completely erased once hostilities began. Palestinians testify that since the start of the war, settlers who were until a short time ago neighbors harassing them have appeared in uniform, with weapons and the authority of the Israel Defense Forces.
The soldiers are joined by settlers, some of them residents of outposts known to be ones harassing Palestinians, who have now received military weapons from the IDF. This is not a new phenomenon. In the past, there were reports indicating that the army admitted that there was no real monitoring of weapons distributed in the West Bank.
Among the people inducted and given weapons are those who in the past admitted to and were convicted of assaulting Palestinians. One of the justifications used by the IDF for distributing arms to settlers who are not soldiers is that they live in illegal outposts situated in dangerous locations. If the outpost is illegal and the location dangerous, what justification is there for distributing weapons that enable the continued existence of the outpost? This is patent support for illegal activities.
Law, Power, and Justice 
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