Three people were killed in the occupied West Bank late on Wednesday after dozens of Israeli settlers attacked a Palestinian village close to Ramallah, the Palestinian Health Ministry said.
Palestinian residents of the village Kafr Malik said on Thursday that there were both casualties and property damage after Jewish settlers attacked the town.
One of the injured Palestinians, Munjed Nawaf Hamayel, said that his brother, Murshed, was shot dead by a soldier during the attack.
“We were surprised that the settlers started attacking the houses and burning the cars,” said Hamayel. “The soldier came from that direction and shot him,” Hamayel said.
“He (the soldier) saw that he had nothing with him.”
The Israeli military confirmed that settlers set fire to property in Kafr Malik and said five people were arrested.
It explained that its soldiers opened fire on Palestinians who had thrown rocks at forces and that some people were killed and wounded as a result.
100 Israeli settlers stormed town, Palestinians claim
Najeb Rostom, the head of Kafr Malik, said more than 100 settlers entered the town on Wednesday evening, set property on fire and shot at residents who tried to stop them.
A human rights organisation released CCTV footage on Thursday of Israeli settlers assaulting Palestinian villages in the occupied West Bank.
In one of the videos by B’Tselem, masked individuals were seen in the village of Taybeh brandishing sticks and throwing stones.
A second video by the organisation showed smoke rising and a car on fire in the town of Kafr Malk. Both incidents took place on Wednesday.
The Israeli army said that they are not aware of the incident in Taybeh.
Funeral held for the victims
On Thursday, Palestinians held a funeral for three men who were killed in the attack.
Mourners carried the bodies of Lutfi Bairat, Mohamed Alnaji, and Murshed Hamayel and chanted, “Listen, Zionists: Our people will never kneel.”
Tensions have risen in the occupied West Bank, where clashes with Israeli troops, arrest raids and attacks by Jewish settlers have occurred more frequently since Hamas’ deadly attack on southern Israel in 2023, in which militants killed over 1,300 people and captured around 150.
Israeli authorities have built around 160 settlements, illegal under international law, housing some 700,000 Jews in the West Bank and East Jerusalem in 1967.