Defense Minister Katz Sets Deadline for IDF to Transfer West Bank Civil Enforcement to Police

Following recent events in the West Bank village of Kusra, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz announced on Monday that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) must submit a plan within two weeks to transfer civilian enforcement responsibilities in Judea and Samaria to the Israeli Police. Katz emphasized, "We will not allow violence or lawlessness by unauthorized groups," during a security discussion attended by IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi, Central Command Chief Avi Blot, and other senior military officials.

The Defense Ministry also reported that, in coordination with Central Command and professional bodies, they will expedite efforts to regulate legal farms in the area. The meeting highlighted serious law violations and violent acts by a small minority of Jewish settlers, which have forced the IDF to allocate increasing resources to address these issues.

The police's future role in the West Bank will include considering economic deterrents against illegal or unregulated activities that impose significant costs on the defense system, alongside criminal enforcement. This announcement follows a recent takeover by a group of settlers near Kusra, who besieged Palestinian homes and resisted multiple military evacuation attempts.

Katz previously instructed the IDF to prepare a plan to transfer all enforcement authority over Israeli civilians in the West Bank to the police, stating that the IDF's role should focus on combating Palestinian terrorism and protecting borders and settlements from threats. Police sources clarified that this transfer primarily concerns operations in Area C outside settlements, which includes about 160 farms spread over a large area. They noted that for police to operate in Areas A and B, Israeli sovereignty must be extended to these areas, converting them into Area C. Currently, police require military accompaniment and specific permits to enforce laws in these zones.

A senior official in the Judea and Samaria district commented that Katz's move aims to shift criticism away from the IDF, which currently holds sovereign authority in the area, toward the police.