The exact deliberations which preceded the current Jenin operation are not yet fully clear. It may be that Gallant and the IDF chiefs are seeking to show the settlers that they meant business against Palestinian militants and there is no cause to repeat the unofficial revenge attacks on Palestinians who had nothing to do with the Eli murders and which the Army had condemned but signally failed to prevent.
Both are extreme, Jewish supremacist West Bank settlers with a long record of militant championship of the “Greater Israel” cause of annexing the West Bank, zero interest in a two-state solution or indeed any political agreement with the Palestinians, and intent on relentless expansion of settlements, which it’s worth remembering are considered by most of the international community, including Britain, to be illegal in international law.
But both are pivotal to the survival of Netanyahu’s premiership, beleaguered as it has been by the huge demonstrations of Israelis protesting against the Government’s plan to neuter the Supreme Court.