Israeli president condemns 'shocking' settler violence in West Bank as attacks continue

Israel's president on Wednesday condemned what he called a "shocking and serious" attack by Jewish settlers against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, calling for an end to a growing wave of settler violence in the territory.

President Isaac Herzog's comments added a voice to what has been muted criticism by top Israeli officials of the settler violence. While Herzog's position is largely ceremonial, it is meant to serve as a moral compass and unifying force for the country.

Israeli security data said that there were at least 704 attacks from settlers by October, compared to 675 in the entirety of 2024.

Palestinian rights groups have repeatedly warned that there has been a sharp uptick in Israeli settler attacks as well as army detentions and raids in the West Bank since the start of the Gaza war in October 2023.

Around 986 Palestinians have been killed in the occupied territory since then, with tens of thousands injured and arrested.

Attacks sweep the territory

On Wednesday, a Palestinian man, 25, was shot by Israeli forces during a settler attack on the village of Kisan, east of Bethlehem, the WAFA news agency cited a local official as saying.

A day earlier, the West Bank witnessed another wave of extremist Israeli settler attacks. At least one child died from injuries sustained during a military raid.

Settler gangs on Tuesday stormed the Palestinian village of Mikhmas and set fire to two vehicles, Hassan Mleihat of Al-Baidar Human Rights Organisation told The New Arab's sister site, Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.

Assaults were also reported in the Masoud area near Kisan, where settlers attacked the home of Nassar Muhammad Rashaida.

In the Abu Najah Bedouin community near the village of Al-Mughayyir, settlers drove herds of livestock into residential areas, disrupting residents who had previously been forcibly displaced from the Ain Samia area a few months ago.

Settlers also stormed agricultural lands in the Ras al-Qadi area of the city of Halhul in the southern West Bank, damaging private property under the protection of Israeli forces, with soldiers also entering the town.

Later Tuesday evening, settlers set fire to Palestinian property and trucks during an attack on an industrial area and Bedouin community located between the towns of Deir Sharaf and Beit Lid.

In a rare incident, the Israeli army reportedly detained several settlers after the attack.

"Soldiers were dispatched to the area of the Beit Lid and Deir Sharaf villages following a report of dozens of masked Israeli civilians who attacked Palestinians and set fire to property in the area," the military said in a statement.

13-year-old boy dies

Separately, the deputy mayor of Beita, Mohammad Hamayel, told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that Aysam Jihad Nasser Maalla, 13, died on Tuesday after complications resulting from tear gas inhalation.

He had been injured around a month ago when Israeli military forces fired tear gas toward him and his family as they were harvesting olives on their land in the Jabal Qamas area of Beita, just south of Nablus.

Maalla, an eighth-grade student at Beita Boys' Primary School, had been in a coma for around 31 days and was declared clinically brain-dead while in intensive care before his death was officially announced.

The Israeli army continued its siege on the town of Ya'bad for a fourth day, turning several homes into military outposts.

A blockade on the Ya'bad's entrances has severely restricted the movement of residents, disrupted daily life, and forced schools to shift to remote learning, the sources told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.

On Wednesday, Herzog said the violence committed by what he called a "handful" of perpetrators "crosses a red line," adding in a social media post that "all state authorities must act decisively to eradicate the phenomenon."

Palestinians and human rights workers accuse the Israeli army and police of failing to halt attacks by settlers.

Israel’s government is dominated by far-right proponents of the settler movement including Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who formulates settlement policy, and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.