As many as 100 Israeli settlers may have been involved in the storming of the Palestinian village of Jit last night, reports The Times of Israel. The city lies north of the occupied Vestbreidda. The residents vandalized, threw Molotov cocktails and stones, and set several cars and houses on fire. Residents of the village describe the attack as well organized. They told Reuters that the settlers should have tear gas, pepper spray, knives and weapons. A 23-year-old man was shot in the chest and killed, Palestinian health authorities report. The mother of Rashid Mahmoud Abdul Qader Sada, who was killed on Friday night, is comforted. Photo: Jaafar Ashtiyeh / AFP Hassan Orman lives in the tiny village and witnessed the attack. – We are a peaceful village. We have not attacked them, but now they have crossed a red line, so that makes us consider it differently, says Orman to Reuters. The attack has met with condemnation from several quarters. The White House wrote in a statement that the attack is unacceptable, and that Israel must do everything they can to stop the violence. But also in Israel, the weight attack has caused strong reactions. “Criminal and anarchist” Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich supports the expansion of settlements in the occupied West Bank, and wants to crush all plans for a Palestinian state. Last year, Smotrich supported a similar attack against a Palestinian village. On Friday, however, he is one of those who reacts. He calls the regime criminal and anarchistic. Several houses were set on fire by violent Israeli settlers on Friday night. Photo: Raneen Sawafta / Reuters Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli President Isaac Herzog also condemn the attack. Herzog asks that those who have broken the law be brought to justice. According to the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), one Israeli civilian has been arrested so far. The IDF told news that they, together with the border police, fired warning shots into the air to disperse and eventually drive away the settlers. It is currently unknown where the residents who attacked Jit last night came from. The Israeli Defense Forces have not responded to news’s inquiries for more information about this. The UN owes Israel – This is a direct consequence of Israel’s settlement policy in the West Bank, says spokeswoman for the UN Human Rights Office Ravina Shamdasani at a press conference in Geneva on Friday. The Israeli government constantly approves new settlements in the West Bank, and has done minimal to prosecute the violence against the Palestinians. Videos analyzed by Amnesty show that Israeli soldiers are often present when settler violence occurs, without intervening. – Israel does not have control over these Hanne Eggen Røislien is a religious historian, special adviser in the Defense Staff and Israel expert. She clarifies that it has not been confirmed who is behind the attack, but says that the residents who stormed Jin on Friday may be so-called violent extremists. This is a group of a dozen Israeli civilian settlers over whom Israel has no control, says Røislien. Many of them are second-generation settlers who were born and grew up on Vestbreidda, in what Røislien describes as a militarized reality. – These are extreme Israelis in the West Bank who do not recognize Israel as their supreme power and authority. And these people want to get rid of the Palestinians. Israel’s Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich Photo: Maya Alerruzzo / AP Røislien believes this is one reason why Israel has chosen to condemn the attack. – They are terrified that a war will break out in the West Breidda. They are more afraid of that than what is happening in the Gaza Strip. These settlers saw the settlement project as higher than the Israeli authorities, and opposed political and legal control. Increase in settler violence Violence against the Palestinians in the West Bank has steadily increased in recent years. But when Hamas attacked Israel on 7 October last year, violence escalated drastically. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) registered over 1,000 acts of violence against Palestinians in the West Bank from 7 October to July this year. According to figures from at least 594 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank during the war. The majority are killed by Israeli military forces. Published 16.08.2024, at 16.18
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Israeli settlers storm Palestinian village – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
