Palestine blames US administration for Israeli settler violence in occupied West Bank

By Qais Abu Samra

RAMALLAH, Palestine (AA) – The Palestinian Authority on Wednesday held the US administration responsible for violence by illegal Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank.

Two Palestinian homes, a shop, and three vehicles were set ablaze in attacks by illegal settlers in the towns of Huwara and Beit Furik near Nablus in the northern West Bank early Wednesday.

“We condemn the ongoing Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people in Gaza and the West Bank, including Jerusalem,” authority spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh said in a statement.

“The continuation of these terrorist attacks by colonists, with the support and protection of the occupation forces … is the responsibility of the American administration, which provides full support to the occupation authorities,” he added.

The Palestinian spokesman called for a firm international position against “terrorism” committed by Israeli settlers.

“The Israeli terrorism committed by the colonists against the Palestinian people requires a firm international position that goes beyond the international inability to implement international law due to US support for the occupation,” he said.

Palestinian officials and leaders and activists worldwide have long decried the US support for Israel in the form of both weapons and rhetoric even as Tel Aviv works to destroy chances for a two-state solution and kills tens of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza.

Tension has been running high in the West Bank due to Israel’s brutal war on the Gaza Strip, which has killed over 44,500 people, mostly women and children, following a Hamas attack in October 2023.

At least 803 Palestinians have since been killed and over 6,450 others injured by Israeli army fire in the occupied territory, according to the Health Ministry.

In July, the International Court of Justice issued a landmark advisory opinion that declared Israel's decades-long occupation of Palestinian land “illegal” and demanded the evacuation of all existing settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar