Beijing: Illegal Israeli settlers assaulted a Palestinian child in the West Bank on Sunday and attempted a vehicle-ramming attack on several other children, marking the latest wave of settler violence in the occupied territory.
According to Anadolu Agency, the official Wafa news agency reported that a child sustained bruises and was hospitalized after being attacked by illegal settlers in Khirbet Ragoum in Masafer Yatta, south of Hebron in the southern West Bank. An illegal settler also attempted to run over several Palestinian children in Khirbet al-Halawa in the same area. Settlers chased other children while they were herding their sheep in the area, Wafa reported.
In the northern city of Nablus, illegal settlers attacked Palestinian farmers while they were cultivating their land in the town of Aqraba. Attackers were also reported to have hurled stones at a Palestinian house in Douma village, resulting in smashed windows.
Separately, illegal settler attacks on a water well halted water supplies to 19 Palestinian communities east of Ramallah. The Jerusalem Water Undertaking, which serves Ramallah and al-Bireh, stated that pumping from the Ein Samiya wellfield was temporarily suspended after illegal settlers assaulted technical crews and blocked access to repair damage to Well No. 6. The utility company called for immediate action to allow crews to carry out repairs and resume supply.
The Ein Samiya wells are located on land belonging to the town of Kafr Malik, northeast of Ramallah on the eastern slopes of the West Bank, an area that has faced repeated settler attacks since before October 8, 2023. More than 500,000 illegal Israeli settlers live in settlements and outposts across the West Bank, while another 250,000 reside in settlements built on land in occupied East Jerusalem, as reported by the Israeli left-wing group Peace Now.
Settler attacks against Palestinians in the West Bank have escalated since the outbreak in the Gaza Strip in October 2023. According to Palestinian figures, Israeli forces and settlers have killed at least 1,109 Palestinians in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, injured nearly 11,000, and detained 21,000 since October 2023. Last year alone, at least 14 Palestinians lost their lives.
The International Court of Justice declared Israel's occupation of Palestinian territory illegal in a landmark opinion in July 2024 and called for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.