Israeli settlers torched Palestinian vehicles and houses in the occupied West Bank, Israel's army and villagers said, the latest in a series of attacks on the village of Bruqin, close to the location where a pregnant settler was killed this month.
Palestinian residents in Bruqin, who say they have faced constant attacks and abuse from Israeli settlers nearby, said a large group had shown up during the night, throwing Molotov cocktails and beating anyone in their way.
Akram Sabra, a resident of the village, said he had left his home to watch as dozens, possibly a hundred, people burned cars belonging to him and his family and threw a Molotov cocktail incendiary at his son's house.
"I saw my vehicles were burned and then they beat me on the head and I am still dizzy," he said.
The Israeli military said it had received a report on Thursday that Israeli civilians had vandalised property in the area of the village, in the northern part of the West Bank.
"Upon receiving the report, IDF (Israel Defence Force) soldiers were dispatched to the scene. The suspects fled prior to the arrival of IDF soldiers," it said, adding that no injuries were reported and the incident was under review.
Israeli forces have imposed a strict lockdown in and around Bruqin following the killing of Tzeela Gez, a heavily pregnant resident of the nearby settlement of Bruchin.
The Israeli military said this week that troops searching the area near Bruqin had killed her attacker, who it said had previously served a prison sentence for being a member of Hamas, and arrested several others suspected of helping with the attack.
Since the killing of Gez, Palestinians have reported multiple attacks in the area by settlers who have burned cars, thrown stones and incendiary devices at houses and bulldozed land belonging to Palestinians.
"They come at us almost on a daily basis, even sometimes several times a day," said Mustafa Khater, 45, another Bruqin resident. "They attack us with stones and abuse."
The United Nations humanitarian organisation OCHA said more than 11,000 Palestinians in Bruqin and Kafr ad Dik towns were blocked in, with 28 attacks by settlers resulting in injury or property damage reported in the week to May 19.
In all, it said there were 1,449 attacks last year, the highest level in more than 20 years.
(Reuters)