Israeli settlers beat Palestinian-American man to death in West Bank

A 23-year-old Palestinian-American man was beaten to death by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank on Friday, in the latest deadly assault as violence surges in the territory.

In a statement, the Israeli military claimed clashes broke out between Palestinians and Israelis on Friday after rocks were thrown at Israeli civilians adjacent to the village of Sinjil, lightly injuring two.

It said the ensuing "violent confrontation... included vandalism of Palestinian property, arson, physical clashes, and rock hurling".

"We are aware of reports regarding a Palestinian civilian killed and a number of injured Palestinians," it said, adding that the incidents were being looked into.

A spokesman for the Palestinian Authority ministry, Annas Abu El Ezz, told AFP that 23-year-old Saif al-Din Kamil Abdul Karim Musalat "died after being severely beaten all over his body by settlers in the town of Sinjil, north of Ramallah, this afternoon".

Relatives of Musallat, who was from Tampa, Florida, were also quoted by the Washington Post as saying he was beaten to death by Israeli settlers.

Relatives of Musallat, who was from Tampa, Florida, were also quoted by the Washington Post as saying he was beaten to death by Israeli settlers, demanding that Washington launch a probe into his death

Musalat, born and based in Florida, travelled to the West Bank last month to spend time with relatives, his family said in a statement issued by lawyer Diana Halum following the deadly attack.

His family said they were "devastated" at his death, describing the 23-year-old as a "kind, hard-working and deeply respected" man who was deeply connected to his Palestinian heritage.

They said he was "protecting his family's land from settlers who were attempting to steal it".

According to the family's statement, settlers blocked an ambulance and paramedics from reaching Musalat as he lay injured, and he died before making it to hospital.

His death was "an unimaginable nightmare and in justice that no family should ever have to face", they added.

"We demand the US State Department lead an immediate investigation and hold the Israeli settlers who killed Saif accountable for their crimes. We demand justice."

Rights groups have denounced a rise in violence committed by settlers in the West Bank, which Israel has occupied since 1967. The United Nations has said that such attacks against Palestinians are taking place in a climate of "impunity".

AFP footage from Ramallah showed his body being carried through the streets draped in a Palestinian flag and flanked by around a hundred mourners.

"The young man was injured and remained so for four hours. The army prevented us from reaching him and did not allow us to take him away," said Abdul Samad Abdul Aziz, from the nearby village of Al-Mazraa Al-Sharqiya.

"When we finally managed to reach him, he was taking his last breath."

The Israeli military said its forces, police and border police were dispatched to the scene and used "riot dispersal means" to break up the confrontation.

The US State Department said on Friday it was aware of the death of the Palestinian American.

"We are aware of reports of the death of a US citizen in the West Bank," a State Department spokesperson said, adding the department had no further comment "out of respect for the privacy of the family and loved ones" of the reported victim.

A week earlier, AFP journalists witnessed clashes between dozens of Israeli settlers and Palestinians in Sinjil, where a march against settler attacks on nearby farmland had been due to take place.

Israeli authorities recently erected a high fence cutting off parts of Sinjil from Road 60, which runs through the West Bank from north to south.

Violence in the territory has surged since the outbreak of the war on Gaza.

Since then, Israeli troops or settlers in the West Bank have killed at least 954 Palestinians, according to Palestinian health ministry figures. Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967.