THE HILLS south of Nablus in the Israeli-occupied West Bank tell the story of a creeping(缓慢而渐进的) annexation (see map). Winding dirt tracks to Palestinian villages are blocked by rocks and piles of earth, cutting off access(切断通路) from fields and olive groves. Israeli settlers have planted vines in neat rows, erected fences festooned(挂满装饰的) with flags and brought in herds of goats. They patrol(巡逻) the area with new utility vehicles and assault rifles(突击步枪) given to them by the Israeli government.
在被以色列占领的约旦河西岸，纳布卢斯以南的山丘讲述着一种渐进式吞并的故事（见地图）。通往巴勒斯坦村庄的蜿蜒土路被石块和土堆阻断，切断了通往田地和橄榄园的通道。以色列定居者整齐地种植了葡萄藤，竖起了挂满旗帜的围栏，并带来了成群的山羊。他们驾驶着以色列政府提供的新型多用途车辆，手持突击步枪，在该地区巡逻。
Their stated(宣称的，声明的) aim is to cause “friction(摩擦，冲突)” with adjacent Palestinian villages. That tends to lead to intervention(干预，介入) by the Israel Defence Forces (IDF), often on the settlers’ side, followed by the expulsion(驱逐，开除) of Palestinians and the expansion of outposts(前哨，边远定居点) of Israeli settlements (see chart 1). Since the Hamas attack of October 7th 2023, and Israel’s subsequent war in Gaza, violent attacks by Israeli settlers in the West Bank have worsened and forced an increasing number of Palestinians to flee (see chart 2). As Israel prepares to go to the polls(进行投票，举行大选) on October 27th, the failure of Binyamin Netanyahu, the prime minister, to rein in(控制，约束) the settlers is making counter-violence(反击暴力) by Palestinian militants increasingly likely.
他们宣称的目标是与邻近的巴勒斯坦村庄制造“摩擦”。这往往导致以色列国防军（IDF）的干预，且通常站在定居者一边，随后是巴勒斯坦人被驱逐、以色列定居点前哨扩张（见图表1）。自2023年10月7日哈马斯袭击以及以色列随后在加沙的战争以来，约旦河西岸以色列定居者的暴力袭击愈演愈烈，迫使越来越多的巴勒斯坦人逃离（见图表2）。随着以色列准备在10月27日举行大选，总理本雅明·内塔尼亚胡未能约束定居者，使得巴勒斯坦激进分子的反击越来越有可能发生。
Events over the past week show how much leeway(自由空间，余地) settlers are granted. Tel Talpiot, the latest and northernmost outpost in the Shiloh settlement bloc, was set up earlier this year on a hill overlooking three Palestinian villages. On August 9th a group from Tel Talpiot occupied the courtyards of homes on the outskirts(郊区，边缘) of the village of Qusra, setting up a makeshift shelter(临时避难所), terrorising(恐吓，威胁) the families and forcing them to hole up(躲藏，藏匿) inside. IDF soldiers sent to “prevent friction” joined the settlers in prayer, rather than dislodging(驱逐，移出) them.
过去一周的事件显示了定居者被赋予多大的自由。特尔塔尔皮奥特（Tel Talpiot）是希洛定居点集团中最新、最北端的前哨，今年早些时候在一座俯瞰三个巴勒斯坦村庄的山上建立。8月9日，一群来自特尔塔尔皮奥特的人占领了库斯拉村边缘的住宅庭院，搭建临时避难所，恐吓这些家庭，迫使他们躲藏在家中。被派去“防止摩擦”的以色列国防军士兵非但没有驱赶定居者，反而加入他们的祈祷。
