Dozens of Israeli settlers launched arson attacks this week against a Palestinian warehouse, a Bedouin village, and farmland in the northern occupied West Bank.

These incidents, which left several injured, are the latest in a series of escalating attacks The violence perpetrated by settlers coincides with the olive harvest season, when Palestinians head to their farmland around towns and cities. Furthermore, it comes just after the UN humanitarian office said the number of violent attacks by Israeli settlers last month was the highest since it began collecting data nearly 20 years ago. Israel has built nearly 160 settlements housing 700,000 Jews since it occupied the West Bank and East Jerusalem—territories the Palestinians claim, along with Gaza, for a future state—during the 1967 Middle East war. An estimated 3.3 million Palestinians live adjacent to these settlements, which are illegal under international law. Images from Tuesday show dozens of masked men on a hillside east of Tulkarm. A Palestinian warehouse in Beit Lid was attacked and several trucks were set on fire. In the Bedouin village of Deir Sharaf, tents were seen burning, while women's screams could be heard in the background. “Intimidation and terror” Palestinian Authority Minister Muayyad Shaaban, head of the Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission, said the attacks were part of a campaign to impose “a hostile environment through intimidation and terror.” The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reported that its troops went to the scene “to disperse the confrontation using riot control measures and detained several Israeli civilians.” They added that the soldiers were subsequently attacked by settlers gathered nearby and their vehicle was damaged.Israeli police stated that four suspects were arrested. In a post on X, Israeli President Isaac Herzog called the latest events “shocking and serious,” blaming them on “a handful of violent and dangerous individuals.” “This violence against civilians and IDF soldiers crosses a red line, and I strongly condemn it,” he said. The head of the IDF Central Command, Major General Avi Bluth, also condemned the attacks, stating that such incidents “undermined the stability of the security situation.” “The reality of radical young anarchists acting violently against innocent civilians and security forces is unacceptable and extremely serious. It must be dealt with firmly,” Bluth told officers, in comments released by the Israeli military. “The directive to IDF soldiers is clear: do not stand idly by and do everything possible.” to prevent any nationalist crimes.”

Tuesday’s large-scale attack was an exceptional case of Israeli law enforcement action to counter settler violence, which has increased dramatically since Hamas-led attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023, triggered the Gaza war.

The Israeli human rights group Yesh Din said that of the 1,701 police investigations into crimes committed by Israelis against Palestinians in the West Bank (excluding East Jerusalem) between 2005 and 2024, 93.8% were closed without any charges being filed.

“Palestinians must be protected.”

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says that in October there were more than 260 attacks by Israeli settlers that resulted in casualties, property damage, or both—an average of eight incidents per day.

OCHA reports that Settler violence during the olive harvest has reached its highest level in recent years, with nearly 150 attacks documented to date, leaving more than 140 Palestinians injured and destroying over 4,200 trees and saplings in 77 villages. Since the beginning of the year, some 1,500 settler attacks have been recorded. UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher recently wrote in X: “The failure to prevent or punish these attacks is incompatible with international law. Palestinians must be protected. Impunity cannot prevail. Those responsible must be held accountable.” Palestinians and human rights organizations often accuse the IDF of protecting or assisting extremist settlers. On Tuesday, hundreds of people attended the funeral of 13-year-old Aysam Mualla.in Beita, near Nablus. The teenager had been in a coma since inhaling tear gas fired by the IDF while villagers were harvesting olives last month near the settlement of Evyatar. In some cases, Israeli activists and foreign volunteers who have come to help Palestinian farmers during the olive harvest have also been attacked. Settlement Growth: On Saturday, videos filmed in Beita and posted on social media showed masked men beating local Palestinians and volunteer paramedics with sticks, as well as a Reuters photographer and a security advisor. An Israeli civilian, the 77-year-old director of a Tel Aviv art school who had joined the harvest, was also photographed with a bloodied face. The BBC has contacted the IDF for comment on this incident. In the nearby village of In Burin, settlers attacked Palestinian olive pickers and an off-duty IDF reservist who was helping them. The settlers also stole sacks of olives. In a statement, the IDF said: “Several Israeli civilians threw stones at the pickers. Several Israelis and Palestinians were injured and evacuated for medical treatment.” They added that their soldiers “operated to disperse the confrontation.” The olive harvest is an important annual event for Palestinians and a vital source of income for many. According to the Israeli settlement watchdog Peace Now, the number of new homes in West Bank settlements for which tenders have been issued in 2025 has already reached a record annual high of 5,667 units. According to the organization, these homes are intended to house approximately 25,000 residents. Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a supporter of settlements, has prioritized accelerating the planning and approval processes for new settler housing, as well as expropriating land for settlement construction and infrastructure, and retroactively legalizing outposts established without Israeli government authorization. In addition to his role as Finance Minister, Smotrich holds a ministerial post with responsibility for civil affairs in the West Bank. He has stated that his efforts are designed to de facto annex the West Bank to Israel and prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state. Click here to read more stories from BBC News Mundo. Subscribe here to our new newsletter to receive a selection of our best content of the week every Friday.You can also follow us on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, X, Facebook, and our WhatsApp channel. And remember that you can receive notifications in our app. Download the latest version and activate them.

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