MK Mossi Raz (Meretz) on Friday planted trees in the village of Awarta, near Itamar in Samaria.
"In honor of Tu B'Shvat, I came to the village of Awarta in the occupied territories. We planted olive trees in place of those that had been destroyed by vandals from nearby hilltops," he stated.
Elihai Ben-Yishai, the brother of Ruthi Fogel, who was killed in a 2011 massacre in Itamar, responded: "After the murder, the residents of the village aided the killers by hiding the weapons and helping them to escape."
"This village has given rise to other murders in the past, and yet Mossi Raz, a member of the coalition, is planting trees there."
On Thursday, Israel's government was forced to suspend a forestation project in the Negev, due to ongoing riots and violence perpetrated by Bedouin Arabs in protest of the planting. One of the riots, on Thursday night, was attended by over 2,000 violent rioters.
In addition to the violence, the United Arab List (Ra'am) put pressure on the other coalition partners, with MK Mazen Ghanaim promising that he will work against the government until the planting stops.
On Wednesday, another Meretz MK, Deputy Economy Minister Yair Golan, tried to calm the Bedouin rioters, telling them, "Today you have power in the government that the Bedouin in the Negev never had. And not only Ra'am. Meretz will protect your interests, I hope Labor will as well. I can tell you that Meir Cohen from Yesh Atid is with you. Alon Schuster from Blue and White is with you."
Also on Wednesday, for the third time this month, Palestinian Authority Arabs uprooted olive trees in the Jewish town of Avigayil, in the Southern Hebron Hills.