In new violence surge, Israeli settlers attack Palestinians in W. Bank
4 Min Read
Armed settlers raid a Jordan Valley village, harassing and beating Palestinian families inside their homes.
-
Israeli settlers with assault rifles in the West Bank on July 1, 2021 (AFP)
Video footage has surfaced, depicting armed Israeli extremist settlers invading residences in the Palestinian village of Mu’arrajat in the Jordan Valley on Tuesday night.
A video shared on social media captured multiple settlers armed with firearms and dressed in khaki clothing, raiding a Palestinian home. They were heard insulting, beating, and harassing Palestinians in inside their own home.
The Israelis' faces were readily identifiable in the videos.
בכל יום שעובר מתרבים מקרי האלימות בגדה המערבית. לצערי, רבים מהם הם בליווי הצבא שלא עושה דבר כדי לעצור את המתנחלים ואת האלימות שלהם. pic.twitter.com/R9tH3dsmGV
— Alon-Lee Green - ألون-لي جرين - אלון-לי גרין 🟣 (@AlonLeeGreen) November 29, 2023
At a certain moment, an Israeli extremist settler struck a Palestinian in the stomach using the butt of his rifle, subsequently aiming the weapon at him as he managed to flee.
According to a classified document revealed on Thursday by Israeli Channel 12, Israeli occupation Police Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has exerted pressure on senior police officers in the West Bank, urging them to avoid pursuing extremists responsible for offenses against Palestinians.
Extremist settlers exploit military status to assault Palestinians
Israeli human rights organizations have raised significant concerns about violence against Palestinians since October 7, specifically pointing to the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) establishing "six volunteer battalions to safeguard West Bank settlements."
These new reserve regional "battalions" consist of volunteers from Israeli settlements and occupied cities and towns who have undergone previous IOF training.
Critics argue that this has blurred the distinction between settlers and the military, allowing extremist settlers to exploit their military status for the further harassment and assault of Palestinians.
Recently, footage showed two such reservists entering a Palestinian school in the southern al-Khalil and assaulting Palestinians.
This is happening as the IOF, alongside extremist settlers, escalated their violence dramatically in the occupied West Bank, with killings and displacement being on the rise since Oct. 7
In a related development, Israeli occupation forces raided the towns of Beitunia west of Ramallah and Tulkarm, firing tear gas and assaulting the family of soon-to-be-released prisoners Nohad and Mohammad Jadallah in Tulkarm.
Palestinian youth Fadi Muayyad Badran was killed during the confrontations with the Israeli occupation in the town of Beitunia, west of the city of Ramallah, in the central West Bank, in addition to several injuries earlier today at dawn.
Footage shows the moment a nine-year-old child was shot and killed by the Israeli occupation forces in #Jenin.#Palestine pic.twitter.com/QGZBq3bgfS
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) November 29, 2023
The killing of Fadi comes less than 24 hours after two Palestinian children were killed by Israeli occupation forces' gunfire in Jenin in the occupied West Bank. Adam Samer al-Ghoul (8 years old) and Bassel Suleiman Abu al-Wafa (15 years old), were shot and killed by the occupation forces on Wednesday afternoon. Footage shows that one of the children was shot right in front of his family home in the al-Basateen district.
A 'new Nakba' is ongoing in the West Bank alongside a genocide in Gaza
There seems to be a strategic calculation made by "Israel" to expand its illegal settlements and steal more Palestinian land. Reports indicate a notable increase in the number of Palestinians forcibly displaced or killed since Oct. 7. The occupation seems to be fully aware that the diverting global and Israeli attention from the West Bank provides cover for more land usurpation in the area.
At the beginning of this month, the 150 residents of Khirbet Zanuta have been forcibly displaced once again. At the time, armed settlers, some of whom were dressed in reserve army uniforms and others concealing their identities, started to break into their homes during the night, assaulting adults, vandalizing and looting possessions, and traumatizing their children.
As of October 7, the Palestinian Prisoners Club reported that the overall count of Palestinians held in Israeli detention has reached 3,325. It is worth noting that United Nations data have lately indicated that a minimum of 247 Palestinians, including children, have been killed in the West Bank by Israeli occupation forces since October 7.
Meanwhile, in Gaza, "Israel" has killed at least 15,000, including more than 6,150 children and over 4,000 women, as per the Government Media Office in Gaza.
