The Legitimation Process of the Hilltop Youth

From Outcasts to the Israeli Cabinet

in Israel Studies Review
Author:
Tom Levizky LL.B, Hebrew University, Israel tomlevizky@mail.tau.ac.il

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Yuval Benziman Senior Lecturer, Hebrew University, Israel Yuval.benziman@mail.huji.ac.il

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DOI:
https://doi.org/10.3167/isr.2024.390109
Keywords:
hilltop youth; legitimation; elections; right-wing; settlements; extremism
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Abstract

Over the years, the ‘hilltop youth’ have acted in opposition to both Israeli state authorities and the settler leadership. Israeli society viewed them as a group acting to realize an extremist religious ideology while violating Israeli law and ignoring the state's decisions. However, after coming to feel that their social position was making it difficult for them to realize their vision, they embarked upon a process of trying to gain political legitimacy. By turning to mass media and by disseminating messages with which the public at large could identify, they have worked to move closer to Israeli consensus opinion. We identify the steps through which this was carried out and trace its success. The process reached a significant point in 2023 when politicians identified with the hilltop youth took up important ministerial positions in government, marking their transition from actors who opposed the state to ones responsible for its decisions.

Contributor Notes

YUVAL BENZIMAN is a Senior Lecturer in the Conflict Research, Management and Resolution Program and the holder of the of the Katia & Hans Guth-Dreyfus lectureship for Conflict Resolution and the Law, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel. His fields of interests include conflict resolution, official and unofficial negotiations, cultural studies, societies’ framing of collective narratives, specializing in Israeli society and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. E-mail: Yuval.benziman@mail.huji.ac.il

TOM LEVIZKY is an Israeli lawyer and a mediator, with an LL.B (The Hebrew University of Jerusalem) and an MA in conflict resolution and mediation (Tel-Aviv University), with international law and alternative methods of conflict resolution as fields of interest. E-mail: tomlevizky@mail.tau.ac.il

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Cover Israel Studies Review
Article Category:
Research Article
Page Count:
19
Keywords:
hilltop youth; legitimation; elections; right-wing; settlements; extremism
Print Publication Date:
01 Mar 2024
Online Publication Date:
01 Mar 2024
Copyright:
© Association for Israel Studies 2024

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