Illegal Israeli settlers attack Palestinian towns, torch vehicles

RAMALLAH, Palestine/ISTANBUL

Illegal Israeli settlers on Friday set fire to five Palestinian vehicles and assaulted towns in the occupied West Bank, local sources said.

Abd Qabaja, an activist with the Palestinian Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission, told Anadolu that the settlers attacked the town of Kafr Qaddum, east of Qalqilya, sparking violent clashes with residents during which settlers fired live bullets.

Qabaja said the Israeli army also intervened to protect the settlers, using tear gas and live ammunition.

He added that the settlers burned three vehicles, including one belonging to Murad Shtayyeh, director of the commission the northern West Bank.

Earlier on Friday, the settlers attacked the towns of Beitin and Deir Dibwan, east of Ramallah, torching two vehicles and vandalizing a mosque by smashing its windows.

Since October 2023, the settlers have carried out more than 7,000 attacks against Palestinians and their property in the West Bank, according to Palestinian figures. The attacks, which escalated after the Gaza war, killed more than a thousand Palestinians and injured over 10,000 others.

In a landmark opinion last July, the International Court of Justice declared Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory illegal and called for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.