Settlers Burn Sheep Pen, Assault Children in Hebron and Ramallah

Israeli settlers have escalated their attacks on Palestinian properties in the cities of Hebron and Ramallah in the occupied West Bank. Field sources reported that armed groups set fire to agricultural facilities and cut down fruitful trees. These attacks occur under the direct protection of the occupation army, leading to injuries among citizens who attempted to defend their properties.

In details of the attacks in Hebron, settlers stormed the Wadi Al-Rakheem area and targeted the home of citizen Riyad Shanaran, where they deliberately set fire to a sheep pen and a traditional tabun oven. The incident resulted in the homeowner sustaining burns to his hand while desperately trying to extinguish the fire and prevent it from spreading to other parts of the dwelling.

In Ramallah Governorate, human rights organizations documented settlers cutting down a number of olive trees in the town of Taybeh, as part of a systematic policy aimed at destroying the Palestinian agricultural sector. The attacks were not limited to inanimate objects, but extended to children in the Abu Faza' Al-Kaabneh community, who were chased and intimidated while on their way to school.

According to official reports issued by the Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission, these attacks have caused severe losses, including the uprooting and poisoning of more than 4,400 olive trees in various governorates. These acts of sabotage were concentrated in the areas of Hebron, Nablus, Jerusalem, and Bethlehem, threatening the primary source of livelihood for thousands of Palestinian families in those areas.

These attacks coincide with the ongoing Israeli military incursions into West Bank cities and towns, which have intensified unprecedentedly since October 2023. Data indicates that these practices are part of a general climate that allows settlers to act with complete freedom to implement plans of forced displacement and to restrict Bedouin and agricultural communities.

Regarding the overall toll, official Palestinian data indicates that the attacks by the occupation and settlers have resulted in the martyrdom of 1,162 Palestinians and the injury of approximately 12,245 others in the West Bank. Arrest campaigns have also reached record levels, with the number of detainees reaching nearly 23,000 citizens, amid extremely complex field conditions.

Settlers stormed the Abu Faza' Al-Kaabneh community and assaulted children through intimidation and harassment while they were on their way to school.