(JNS) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday expressed support for bringing to justice the rioters allegedly responsible for burning down a military facility and attacking IDF soldiers during overnight protests across southern Samaria’s Binyamin region.

“No civilized country can tolerate violent and anarchic acts such as the burning of a military facility, damage to IDF property and assaults on security personnel by the country’s own citizens,” he said. “Those who commit such acts undermine the rule of law and harm the state.

“I call on law enforcement authorities to swiftly investigate the events and prosecute the rioters to the full extent of the law,” Netanyahu said, while noting that the vast majority of Judea and Samaria’s residents are exemplary role models for “developing the Land [of Israel], meaningful service in the IDF and contributing to the cultivation of Torah scholars.”

According to an Israel Defense Forces statement on Monday morning, a group of Israelis “set fire to and vandalized a security site containing systems that assist in thwarting terrorist attacks and maintaining security in the Binyamin Brigade” area of deployment.

It added that the damage caused to the site, estimated at several millions of shekels, “poses a danger to the safety of residents.”

Graffiti left at the site following the attack reportedly read, “Revenge from Beit She’an,” suggesting that the perpetrators were not residents of Judea and Samaria but rather hailed from the northern Israeli city.

The IDF condemned “any act of violence against security forces,” saying it expected authorities “to bring to justice those Israelis who harm the forces that are fulfilling their role of protecting Israeli civilians.”

Israeli media aired video footage of the protests, which were reportedly sparked by the shooting by IDF soldiers of a 14-year-old Israeli boy in Samaria over the weekend, showing troops were attacked with rocks.

The Ynet news outlet reported that right-wing activists also tried to enter military vehicles and to break into an IDF base in the Beit El area while calling for the imprisonment of the battalion commander deemed responsible for the incident in which the teen was injured.

In response to the events, Defense Minister Israel Katz called security officials to his office for an urgent discussion on “attacks on IDF troops and security forces in Judea and Samaria,” he said in a statement.

“This phenomenon must be put to an immediate end. We will take all measures and root out this violence,” the defense minister said.

“IDF soldiers and other security personnel are working day and night to protect the residents and eradicate Palestinian terror in unprecedented offensive activities in Judea and Samaria,” according to the statement.

“Many soldiers are reservists who have been serving with extraordinary dedication for hundreds of days since the events of Oct. 7, and we will not allow a handful of violent people to harm them,” Katz said.

The riots were condemned by Judea and Samaria leaders, with council heads and mayors from across the region issuing a joint statement on Monday, slamming the events as a “serious violation” of Judaism’s precepts.

“We strongly condemn any act of aggression against IDF soldiers,” the declaration said. “IDF soldiers are our sons and they risk their lives for the defense of the people of Israel and the Land of Israel.”

“It cannot be that a small group of criminals be allowed to tarnish the settlement enterprise, the residents, as well as the wonderful youth working to settle the entire country,” the local leaders stated.

“We commend the rabbinic and political leadership of the settlement movement for expressing a clear stance against these outrageous actions,” they continued, exclaiming, “The Israel Police must act severely toward the offenders and bring them to justice!”

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who also manages civilian issues in Judea and Samaria as a second minister in the defense ministry, called Sunday night’s riots an “unacceptable” red line.

“Criminals are criminals are criminals. Everywhere in the country,” Smotrich said. “I call on the Israel Police to investigate the events thoroughly and to bring those responsible to justice.”

National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir wrote on X: “Harm to the security forces, security facilities and IDF soldiers—who are our sons, brothers and protectors—is a red line, and must be dealt with with the utmost severity.” The minister’s post concluded: “We are brothers.”

On Saturday night, Netanyahu had also condemned a riot by right-wing Jewish activists that allegedly led to an attack against troops in Samaria.

The Honenu legal defense group claimed the soldiers opened fire at the rioters, hitting a 14-year-old boy in the arm and seriously injuring him.

The army, which up until that point had not acknowledged any injuries caused to civilians, subsequently denied having fired on the rioters, but said it was investigating the claims “in all their aspects, including the warning shots” that were used to de-escalate the event.

The military recorded 663 instances of violence by Jews against Arabs and security forces across Judea and Samaria in 2024, a 34% decrease compared to the previous year, when 1,005 attacks were reported.

Meanwhile, Arab terrorists targeted Jews in Judea and Samaria at least 6,343 times last year, according to figures published by the Rescuers Without Borders (Hatzalah Judea and Samaria) NGO on Feb. 17.

Twenty-seven Israelis were murdered in Judea and Samaria in 2024, and more than 300 others were wounded, the group said in its annual report.