Israeli settlers, operating alongside the military, have carried out a wave of violence across the occupied West Bank in recent days, setting fire to at least two mosques and detaining dozens of Palestinians in the aftermath of a confrontation that left four Palestinians and two Israelis dead.
Tensions have been running high since Israeli forces shot and killed four Palestinians in the town of Tal, near Nablus, during a settler incursion onto Palestinian land last Friday, says Al Jazeera.
Around 30 settlers had entered the town, adjacent to the illegal Israeli settlement of Havat Gilad, attempting to force entry into two homes before residents confronted them and settlers opened fire. Footage from the incident shows a Palestinian man wrestling a rifle away from one of the settlers and shooting him before soldiers killed the Palestinian man; three other Palestinians died in the clash, with four more wounded.
Following the deaths of the two Israelis, the military moved additional troops into the occupied territory. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed retaliation, telling reporters that forces had been instructed to enter villages, conduct searches, seize weapons and make arrests, and that the military stood ready to expand operations against what he described as strongholds of militancy.
Read more: Netanyahu says Iran tops agenda ahead of Trump meeting
In the village of Qusra, southeast of Nablus, village council head Abdel Azim Wadi said settlers set fire to a mosque early Sunday morning, spray-painting Hebrew slogans on its walls referencing revenge and naming one of the Israelis killed near Tal. He told Reuters the village has endured repeated attacks since 2011, with the frequency increasing since the war on Gaza began.
Palestinian officials also reported an attempted arson attack on a mosque near Kour, southeast of Tulkarem. Village council member Farid Jiyousi said three settlers tried to set the building alight at dawn, but worshippers extinguished the fire before it could spread to the mosque’s main prayer area. He described it as the first such attack the village had experienced, noting that Hebrew graffiti had also been left on the mosque’s walls.
Separately, surveillance footage circulating on local social media captured settlers setting fire to a Palestinian home in Beit Furik, east of Nablus, before fleeing the scene; residents were able to contain the blaze and limit the damage.
According to Israeli Army Radio, at least 30 settler attacks have been recorded across the West Bank since Friday alone. Citing security data, the broadcaster reported that such attacks have risen 63% during the first half of 2026 compared to the second half of last year, with at least 660 incidents recorded so far this year versus 405 previously, describing the weekend’s toll as an unusually high concentration of nationalist-motivated crimes.
Read more: Netanyahu discusses dismantling of International Criminal Court with Marco Rubio
Since October 2023, at least 1,185 Palestinians have been killed in the occupied West Bank, including 250 children, with at least 87 killed so far in 2026 alone, 21 of them by settlers.
Al Jazeera correspondent Nour Odeh, reporting from the West Bank, described residents as effectively isolated and unable to reach emergency services, spending sleepless nights guarding their homes against arson attacks with little expectation of protection from either Palestinian police or the Israeli military accompanying the settlers.
The Palestinian Prisoner’s Society said those detained in the crackdown include former Palestinian prisoners, with arrests concentrated in the Nablus governorate where Israeli forces have been conducting incursions. In Tal specifically, the group reported large-scale raids and interrogations, with roughly 80 people arrested since Friday, most of whom have since been released; about 18 Palestinians, including children, remain in custody.
