Israeli settlers kill three Palestinians as attacks surge amid Iran war
Israeli settlers shot and killed three Palestinians in the occupied West Bank over the weekend, amid a surge in attacks since the start of the war on Iran.
A fourth Palestinian died after inhaling tear gas fired by Israeli forces during one of the settler assaults.
The first incident took place on Saturday in the Wadi al-Rakhim area of Masafer Yatta, south of Hebron, when settlers opened fire at two brothers from close range.
Amir Mohammad Shanaran was killed in the attack, while his brother was critically wounded, according to Palestinian media.
The two men were reportedly shot near their home by settlers from the nearby settlement of Susiya, which is built on Palestinian land.
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On Sunday morning, settlers attacked Palestinians in the town of Abu Falah, northeast of Ramallah, assaulting residents and opening fire.
Two men identified by the Palestinian health ministry as Thaer Farouq Hmayel, 24, and Farea Jawdat Hamayel, 57, were killed by gunfire.
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Another resident of the town, Mohammad Hassan Marra, also died during the attack after inhaling tear gas fired by Israeli forces. Medical sources said he arrived at a hospital in Ramallah in cardiac arrest.
At least seven other people were wounded in the attacks, including three with gunshot wounds to the head, one with a pelvic injury and another shot in the shoulder.
Palestinian Vice President Hussein al-Sheikh condemned the attacks as a “major escalation of settler terrorism”.
“We call on the international community to intervene immediately to protect innocent Palestinians and to take serious punitive measures,” Sheikh wrote on X.
Hamas also mourned the men killed, saying they died while “confronting the barbaric attack by settlers”, and called on Palestinians to “escalate confrontation and clashes” against Israeli forces and repel “settler attacks by all available means”.
Surge in attacks
The latest violence comes amid a rise in settler attacks recorded since the US and Israel launched their war on Iran last week.
According to Hassan Mleihat, director of Al-Bidar Human Rights Organization, attacks have increased by 25 percent since the war began, with assaults reported in several areas simultaneously.
Mleihat told the Anadolu Agency that settlers and Israeli authorities were exploiting the political and security circumstances created by the war to intensify pressure on Palestinians to displace them from their land.
Attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank are frequent, but they have surged since October 2023, often involving live fire and organised efforts to displace nomadic Palestinian communities.
According to Palestinian estimates, more than 40 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli settlers in the West Bank since October 2023. No settlers have been prosecuted for any of these deaths.
An estimated 700,000 settlers live in over 200 settlements across the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.
Israeli settlements are considered illegal under international law.
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