Israeli Forces and Settler Violence in West Bank

In the town of Turmus Ayya, northeast of Ramallah, Israeli forces stopped a vehicle and assaulted the young men inside, causing injuries and bruises. The Israeli army set up a checkpoint at the entrance to Rawabi, obstructing traffic, and established other checkpoints at the entrances of the town of Sinjil and the village of Al-Mughayyir to search vehicles and check the identities of citizens, resulting in severe traffic congestion, according to Palestinian Wafa news. Additionally, this Sunday morning, the army set up a checkpoint on Birzeit University Street, and another force raided the town without making any arrests. The Israeli army, with the participation of settlers, bulldozed lands in the ‘Wadi Abbas’ area between the towns of Deir Istiya and Qarawat Bani Hassan west of Salfit. Settlers also raided the ‘Khalet al-Sedra’ community in the town of Mikhmas northeast of Jerusalem, closed the only road leading to it, and cut electrical cables, resulting in a power outage for the community. The Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission clarified that settler attacks have caused the displacement of more than 30 Bedouin communities comprising 323 families, the latest being the Mghayr al-Deir community between the villages of Deir Dibwan and Mikhmas, consisting of 25 families with a total of 124 individuals. The commission stated that settlers have carried out approximately 1,200 assaults since the beginning of this year, with 38% targeting Bedouin communities in the eastern slopes and the Palestinian Jordan Valley. Settler violence in the West Bank has increased since the start of the Israeli war on Gaza in late 2023, including repeated incursions and raids on the occupied Palestinian territories.