Dozens of Israeli settlers have set fire to houses and cars in a village in the occupied West Bank, with the Palestinian health ministry stating that at least one person has been killed.
The settlers, some wearing masks, launched the attack on the village of Jit near the town of Nablus on Thursday evening. One local villager in his early 20s was killed, and another person critically injured in the chest, according to the Palestinian health ministry.
Israeli political leaders condemned the attack, with Israeli President Isaac Herzog calling the perpetrators an extreme minority harming the law-abiding community. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) responded by detaining one Israeli national involved in the incident and launching an investigation in collaboration with Israel’s security agency Shin Bet and the Israeli police.
Footage circulating on social media showed houses and vehicles engulfed in flames, with plumes of smoke billowing above the village. The US denounced the attack, calling it unacceptable and must stop, urging Israeli authorities to protect all communities and hold the perpetrators accountable.
Amid international attention on the Israel-Hamas conflict, the wave of settler violence in the West Bank has led to sanctions imposed by the US, EU, and UK on settler leaders and outposts in a bid to address the escalating situation. The ongoing clashes between Israeli settlers and Palestinians have resulted in displacements, injuries, fatalities, and extensive property damage, prompting urgent calls for action to prevent further violence.
