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Settlers in Hebron are known as some of the most notoriously aggressive.

Hebron and south of West Bank

On January 1st, settlers from Efrat, Navi Daniel, Ele’azer and other settlements in Bethlehem district burned a part of Hamedia Mosque in the Faghour area of the town of al-Khader, situated to the south west of Bethlehem. The settlers attempted to destroy the ceiling of the Mosque. Several statements and condemnations were issued from several human Rights and Civil Society organizations seriously worried for such actions concerning holy places. These actions violate the right to profess religion belief and were intended to hurt Palestinian Muslims challenging them in their values sphere.

On 4 January, tens of settlers from Hebron District marched in the village of Wadi Haska to the south west of the town of Halhoul. During the march, the settlers closed the main road, preventing the Palestinians from using it. A number of the settlers threw stones at Palestinian cars. The soldiers, who eventually arrived to the area, didn’t do anything to stop the settlers’ actions. This event took place few days after a military operation in the quarter, during which two Israelis and two Palestinians had been killed.

On 11 January, tens of settlers from the Kiryat Arba settlement, to the east of Hebron, gathered on a land belonging to Mahmoud al-Boti Jaber and Ziad Hammoda Jaber, situated to the west of the settlement. According to residents of the area, the settlers often come on this site in order to establish a new outpost there, which means the confiscation of eight dunam of Palestinian land. The case has been ongoing for four years, during which, the settlers have attempted to seize the land and the local families have worked to defend themselves by several means: attempting to create a legal case and, at the same time, coordinate protest activities supported by local organizations such as the Hebron Rehabilitation Committee, the Land Defense Committee, etc., and also international organizations such as the Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) and the International Solidarity Movement (ISM). The family of Jamal Is’efan, who live very close to the mentioned land, report that the settlers who stayed on Jaber’s land for three days, threw  stones at many houses nearby, including the Is’afan and Abed Elhai families,  and beat 14 year-old Jamil Hisham.

On 13 January, settlers from Kiryat Arba continued to throw stones and glass bottles at Palestinian houses in Wadi Nassara, situated to the south of the settlement. Included among the attackers were students from a Jewish religious school sited on the western side of the settlement.

These students prevented the residents from using the main road, called the settlers “Prayers Road” and chased many children, with intent to beat them. At the same time, tens of settlers who occupied the Rajabi Building since March 2007 (on the western portion of the settlement) threw stones from the roof of their houses onto several Palestinian houses, shops and people close to the building. The resident Bassam Fahid Ja’bari reported that his shop was stoned by these settlers, who also tried to beat him. These actions happened in plain view of Israeli soldiers.

On 14 January, settlers from various settlements in the southern Hebron hills, damaged tens of trees belonging to the Hadaleen tribe. The action took place a few days after the Israeli military gave demolition orders for nine water wells to the Palestinian residents of the area.

On 15 January, settlers from the Beit Hadassah outpost in downtown Hebron, burned the house of Abed al-Khaleg Sader, located very close to the outpost. Members of the Sader family reported that five armed settlers broke a window and entered the house, burning some furniture. When the settlers left, some neighbors rushed to extinguish the flames. This house has become a longtime target for the settlers who are trying to force the family to leave in order to annex the house to their outpost.

On 25 January, on the main road near the village of Bayt Ummar to the north of Hebron, a settler speeding in his truck, ran over two Palestinians, injuring them seriously. Twenty-seven-year-old Mofeed Mohammed Mahmoud Khaleel was injured in the head and 20-year-old Mo’taz Mohammed Khaleel had his leg broken. Both were taken to the hospital in the city. According to local residents, settlers often speed on this road and this is not the first time that such an event has occurred.

On 27 January, a number of settlers, in cooperation with the Israeli military, added five new mobile homes to an outpost located on the western side of Karmi Itzor settlement.  Karmi Itzor sites between Halhoul and Bait Ummar towns to the north of Hebron District. The land belongs to Abu Yousef family from Halhoul. One month ago electricity and water lines were installed in the outpost. The Palestinian Land Defense Committee sources said that the settlers and the military enlarged the outpost although the legal case over the land was still in the courts and no decision has been made yet. The settlers’ action shows one time more how, in order to confiscate land to expand their outposts and settlements, they can easily establish facts on the ground.

On 2 February, five settlers from Kiryat Arba attacked 12-year-old Mahmoud Awni Da’na and 13 year old Mohammed Abed Elsamad Jaber. The children had been attacked while they were walking on the main street to the west of the settlement. Both suffered injuries on the hands and faces.

On 4 February, settlers from the Ramot Yishai outpost in the downtown area of Hebron threw stones at 47-year-old Abed al-Kareem Haddad and his 12-year-old son Ahmed from the village of Tel Rumeida village sited near the outpost. Both had been taken to the ‘Alya Hospital. They suffered injuries over several parts of their bodies. Haddad’s wife reported that around 20 armed settlers from Ramot Yishai attacked and stoned their house. Israeli soldiers, who were already there, stopped the settlers only after they finished the attack.

On 21 February, the head of the Israeli Army in the West Bank issued a new military order to confiscate 900 dunam of land belonging to different families from the towns of Dahireyya, Ramadeen and Dora, located in the southwest of the Hebron district. The order falls under the category of “border adjustment”: the land is required to build a “security wall” around the Eshkolot settlement. According to the Palestinian Land Defense Committee in Hebron, who studied the map given to the owners of the land, actually not just 900 dunam of land will be confiscated but an additional 2400 more dunam will fall behind the Separation Wall, which means its de facto confiscation.

On 22 February, tens of settlers organized a big march during the first hours of the night on the main street to the west of Kiryat Arba. The settlers, in cooperation with Israeli soldiers, damaged several cars parked on both sides of the street. The cars targeted belong to Waleed Khled Odah Ja’baree, Najeh Ragheb Ja’baree, Mohammaed li Ja’baree and the Qaimaree family.

On 22 February, three settlers from Ramot Yishi in Tel Rumeida, stoned and threw rubbish on the home of Mohammed Hamed Abu Aisha.

Nablus and the north of West Bank

On 15 January, a group of settlers attacked some farmers on the west of Bil’in village located to the west of Ramallah. The settlers came and attacked the farmers, opening fire on goats that belong to Wajeeh Bernat. The farmers injured are Farahat Bernat and Issa Abu Rahma.

On 19 January, settlers uprooted around 70 new olive trees that belong to Rateb al-Na’san from the village of Mughair, situated on the north of Ramallah. Local sources reported the land located between the villages of Mughair and Kryout have been already targeted several times by settlers living in the Ramallah area.

On 22 January, a group of armed settlers from the Miskiot settlement, situated to the north east of Tobas town attacked Palestinians’ houses in Wadi al-Mleh village, 20 km to the east of Tobas. The settlers attacked with stones shepherds and houses seizing three cows. In this area a lot of settlers’ aggressions and attacks have been recorded during the last months. The settlers claimed as part of their settlement, the Palestinian land around the settlement where Palestinians farmers used to work and feed their cows and goats. According to the residents of the village, the Israeli military never stopped the settlers, despite the fact that many legal cases were brought before the Israeli Army and police.

The lack of a reply from the police allowed the settlers to make their attacks freely. The residents of the village don’t know how to face the settlers’ violence against them and are increasingly scared.

On 1 February, around 50 settlers came with 12 cars to the village of Wadi Maleh, situated to the north of Nablus District, in the north valley. The settlers scattered over the land around the village, forcing the farmers in Hamamat to leave the place. This is the second time in the last three weeks that the settlers have come to the village and attacked the farmers.

 On 13 February, settlers and Israeli soldiers entered Joseph’s Tomb near the Balata refugee camp to the east of Nablus. They came in the evening and spent a night there praying. The tomb was given to Palestinian Authority according to Oslo agreement,  and according to the agreement signed between the PA and Israel, the settlers are not allowed to come and visit it. In reality, settlers under Israeli military protection come from time to time and pray in it. According to Palestinians sources in Nablus, settlers are coming more frequently of late, and often attacking the residents of the place, during which the Israeli Army imposes curfew on most of the Palestinian villages and camps in the area, such as the Balata and Askar camps. 

On 20 February, pigs belonging to the settlers from Ariel settlement to the south of Nablus city attacked the 50 year old Hikmat Abed al-Mu’ti al-Reemawi from the village of Bayt Reema in the Salfeet District. Hikmat was attacked while going to his land which is situated very close to the settlement. The victim was injured over many places on his  body. Hikmat was taken to theYasser Arafat Hospital in Salfeet and spent 13 days there for special treatments. Palestinian Police sources in the city reported that these aggressions are common. Especially in Wadi Qana and Dair Isteya village, settlers’ pigs have damaged several trees and attacked the residents. The same sources reported that many cases have been recorded and discussed officially with the Israeli police, but no real action has been taken to prevent these aggressions.