A settler campaign to reestablish a permanent military presence at Joseph’s Tomb, a flashpoint Jewish religious site in the West Bank, has recently reignited against the backdrop of the IDF's increased anti-terror efforts in the region, and in Nablus in particular.
The IDF raided the city’s kasbah on Tuesday, searching roughly 250 buildings and arresting at least six Palestinians suspected of involvement in terror activity. The operation is part of Operation Iron Wall, a broader military campaign launched in January to root out terrorists in the northern West Bank.
During the raid, two Palestinian attackers attempted to seize a soldier’s weapon. Both were killed by Israeli forces. Gunfire during the struggle left one soldier moderately wounded and three others with minor injuries.
For settler leaders and their allies in government, the Nablus operation has become a case in point for why the army should establish a continuous presence at Joseph’s Tomb, a site sacred to Jews and Muslims. Under the Oslo Accords, the tomb is recognized as an Israeli-controlled enclave within Area A, which is otherwise under full Palestinian Authority control. In practice, access to the site has been limited to coordinated IDF escorts, and the compound has been repeatedly vandalized by Palestinians.
On Thursday, the Knesset will hold an emergency hearing to debate the possibility of a permanent IDF deployment at the tomb. The session, led by Knesset lawmaker Zvi Succot of the Religious Zionist party, will include military officials and settler leaders. A new position paper from the security-focused Bitkhonistim movement is expected to argue that a permanent presence at the site is a vital Israeli security interest.
“The restoration of a permanent Jewish presence at Joseph’s Tomb is essential—militarily, diplomatically and historically,” Succot said.
Nachi Weiss—chairman of the Returning to Joseph initiative and author of a book on the site—said: “We’ve waited 20 years for this discussion. This is history, since Israel’s withdrawal from Joseph’s Tomb on October 7, 2000. All the representatives present—from both the government and the IDF—acknowledged that the vision and plan to return to full Israeli sovereignty over the site are more attainable than ever. We all understand that there’s no growth without roots.”
The IDF withdrew from the site 25 years ago, following the death of Border Police officer Madhat Yusuf during a Palestinian riot. The government at the time deemed the area too dangerous to defend. Since January, settlers have staged weekly demonstrations near Nablus to demand renewed access and permanent security.
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A move to reestablish an IDF outpost at the site would mark a dramatic shift in Israeli policy and could provoke sharp international criticism. It may also undermine the Palestinian Authority’s governance in and around Nablus, where its control is already fragile.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Defense Minister Israel Katz are among the senior officials reportedly backing the effort, which dovetails with a broader push to entrench Israeli presence in the West Bank, including retroactive authorization of settlements previously evacuated under the 2005 disengagement plan.
Sukkot, working with Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan and bereaved father Rabbi David Ben-Natan, has emerged as the political face of the Joseph’s Tomb initiative. “We will do everything necessary to achieve this goal,” he said.