Israeli settlers sexually assault Palestinian man in occupied West Bank

Israeli settlers attacked a village in the northern Jordan Valley, sexually assaulting a Palestinian man and threatening to rape women and children, Haaretz reported on Tuesday, citing eyewitnesses.

The attack on the village of Khirbet Humsa took place around midnight over the weekend, when dozens of masked settlers stormed the community and attacked locals' homes and tents, according to eyewitnesses cited by Haaretz.

Foreign activists and other witnesses said settlers sexually abused a man who was beaten, stripped, and restrained on the ground. They continued to beat the man with clubs while he was unable to move, according to the witnesses.

The man was one of several villagers - including men, women, and children- who were dragged out of their homes by settlers and bound with zip ties. The Palestinians were piled on top of each other, according to the Haaretz report, and beaten with sticks and weapons.

Witnesses reported hearing one settler threatening to kill children and rape women.

The attack, which lasted around an hour, saw homes vandalised and looted, and livestock set loose.

Four Palestinian men and two foreign activists were taken away for medical treatment after the attack.

The Israeli army said it had opened an investigation into the matter, but the military, which continues to illegally occupy the West Bank, has long been accused of working in tandem with violent settler groups.

Both have been accused of working together to expand the de facto borders of Israel by intimidating Palestinians and forcibly expelling them from their villages, in what is widely described as acts of ethnic cleansing.

Settler violence in the occupied West Bank has risen to record levels since the start of Israel's war on Gaza in October 2023. In that period, settler violence and attacks by Israeli forces have killed at least 1,127 Palestinians and wounded 11,700 others.

At least six Palestinians have been shot dead by settlers since the beginning of March, roughly coinciding with the launch of the US-Israeli war on Iran.

Israeli human rights group B'Tselem said the increase in bloodshed "indicates the intensification of Israel's ethnic cleansing efforts under cover of the war with Iran".