Illegal Israeli settlers attack Palestinian village in northern West Bank

By Awad Rjoub

RAMALLAH, Palestine (AA) - Illegal Israeli settlers attacked homes of Palestinians under the protection of the Israeli army in the village of Qusra in the southern city of Nablus in the northern West Bank, the Palestine news agency, WAFA reported.

“The townspeople rushed to repel the attack, which led to clashes with the occupation army and settlers,” during which the army used “live bullets,” it said.

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said it treated the wounds of a 29-year-old man who was injured during fighting in Qusra and transported him to the hospital.

It was not immediately clear whether the bullets that hit the victim were fired by settlers or the army.

In the southern West Bank, Arif Jaber, an anti-settlement activist, told Anadolu that the army reinforced forces in Palestinian neighborhoods in the area under its control in the city.

“The occupation forces spread extensively in the Jaber neighborhood and Wadi al-Hussein around the old town of Hebron, and arrested at least five residents,” he added.

Jaber noted that Palestinian neighborhoods in the city center have been under curfew most of the time since Oct. 7, in addition to raids, arrest campaigns and the pursuit of residents who are forced to leave their homes.

Tensions have been high across the West Bank since Israel launched a deadly military offensive against the Gaza Strip since a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7.

More than 500 Palestinians have since been killed and nearly 5,000 injured by Israeli army fire in the occupied territory, according to the Health Ministry.

*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala