Israeli settlers launched attacks on Palestinian villages in the occupied West Bank in the early hours of Sunday morning, burning two mosques and leaving graffiti on walls, according to Palestinian officials.
The violence came in the wake of a deadly confrontation on Friday, when a group of Israeli settlers moved into the area around the Palestinian village of Tal, located southwest of Nablus. Villagers came out to confront the settlers, and the resulting shootout left four Palestinians and two Israeli soldiers dead — one of the soldiers had been serving as a local security coordinator.
That Friday incident added to a troubling pattern of settler-related clashes this year, during which dozens of Palestinians have been killed and hundreds more wounded, according to data from the United Nations and the Palestinian Authority.
Abdel Azim Wadi, who heads the village council in Qusra — a village southeast of Nablus — told Reuters that settlers burned down a newly finished mosque in his community during the early morning hours on Sunday. He said Hebrew-language slogans were sprayed on the walls, including the phrase ‘Jewish revenge’ and the name of one of the Israelis killed near Tal.
“The village has faced repeated attacks since 2011, and these attacks have increased since the war,” Wadi said in a telephone interview.
The Israeli military confirmed that soldiers dispatched to Qusra, which sits near several large Israeli settlements, discovered graffiti and evidence of arson at the scene. The military said police officers would be sent to gather evidence.
“The security forces strongly condemn incidents of this kind, including harm to religious sites, and will continue to act decisively to maintain security and public order in the area,” the military stated.
Palestinian officials also reported that settlers attempted to burn a mosque near Kour, a village southeast of the city of Tulkarm. Village council member Farid Jiyousi said three settlers tried to set the mosque on fire at dawn, but worshippers managed to extinguish the flames before they spread to the main area of the building. Graffiti in Hebrew was also found on the mosque’s walls.
“This is the first attack our village has experienced,” Jiyousi said.
Most countries and United Nations bodies regard Jewish settlements in the West Bank as illegal under international law, a position Israel disputes. Palestinians are seeking to establish an independent state in Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem.
Settler attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank have surged sharply since Israel launched a military campaign against Gaza’s Palestinian Hamas rulers in October 2023, following an attack by Gaza militants that killed more than 1,000 Israelis.
In response to Friday’s deadly incident, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — who faces an election in October — ordered additional troops into the area and announced that more settlements would be approved to bolster security. Right-wing members of his government, including hardline Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, have called for accelerated efforts to take control of the West Bank, which Israel has occupied since the 1967 Middle East war.
