Palestinians recount ‘brutality’ of illegal Israeli settler attack in Wadi Rahhal village of West Bank

By Qais Abu Samra

RAMALLAH, Palestine (AA) — Palestinians from the village of Wadi Rahhal in the southern occupied West Bank have recounted the "brutal" attack carried out by illegal Israeli settlers under the protection of the army on their village, killing a local resident and injuring others.

A group of illegal settlers attacked the outskirts of the village, damaging homes, attempting to set them alight, and firing live ammunition at young Palestinians, the villagers told Anadolu.

Khalil Salem Khalawi, 40, was killed by settler gunfire, and others were injured, the Palestinian Health Ministry said.

His death, along with that of 11 more Palestinians killed in a large Israeli military operation that began Wednesday, raised the toll in the West Bank since Oct. 7 to 662, with roughly 5,400 others injured.

Palestinians say that illegal settler attacks are escalating in the West Bank in an organized manner, led by gangs and protected by the army. These attacks have resulted in the deaths of 19 Palestinians and injuries to others since Oct. 7, according to the Palestinian Authority's Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission.

The village of Wadi Rahhal is located south of Bethlehem on a hill covered with olive trees and vineyards. About 1,000 Palestinians live there, it is surrounded by the illegal Israeli settlement of Efrat and a settlement road that has taken most of its land.

Munir Fawaghrah, one of the residents of Wadi Rahhal, described the violent attack. "Yesterday, I was in front of my house living a normal life when suddenly a group of settlers attacked the homes. A vehicle was destroyed, they attacked my house, and stones were thrown at us from all directions,"

"This is not the first time settlers have attacked the village. Since Oct. 7, the attacks have been escalating," Fawaghrah added.

He pointed out that the young man who was killed, Khalil Khalawi, was with him before he tried to retrieve his vehicle, but the settlers blocked his way, so he left it and tried to enter a nearby house. A settler then shot him in the back and killed him.

Fawaghrah also mentioned that "the killer settler is known by name to the Palestinian residents and the Israeli army."

- Settlers protected by Israeli soldiers

Another local Palestinian, Majdi Atayat, said the illegal settlers' attack on his village "was carried out under the protection and supervision of the Israeli army."

"A group of settlers brutally attacked the village, while the Israeli army was present at the site, watching and doing nothing," Atayat went on.

"If there had been any danger to the settlers, the army would have intervened and done everything it could to save them, but it is a part and partner of this operation."

"The attack lasted about 40 minutes, during which the settlers tried to burn and destroy homes, including mine, using live ammunition and stones," Atayat said.

The scene resembled a warzone, he recounted, adding that the attackers were "not settlers, but a gang trained for such assaults."

Munther Amira, a Palestinian activist against settlement expansion, said "settlement escalation remains the dominant situation throughout the West Bank."

Amira added, "What happened in the village of Wadi Rahhal would not have occurred without a green light from the Israeli army and government, which trains, arms, and supports the settlers, protecting them from prosecution and accountability."

He asserted that what was happening "demands that all Palestinians be called to protect the towns that are being attacked by settlers."

"Israel is implementing a dangerous policy aimed at killing and expelling all Palestinians, using settlers as a tool to implement its plan, taking advantage of the international preoccupation with the war on Gaza."

Noting the "global silence on the genocide happening in Gaza" as well on what is happening in the West Bank, Amira said that all this pointed to a single truth: "No one can protect us but ourselves."

According to data from the left-wing Israeli movement Peace Now, about half a million Israelis live in 146 large settlements and 144 settlement outposts established on the territory of the West Bank, not counting occupied East Jerusalem.

Under international law, all Israeli settlements in the occupied territories are considered illegal.

In a landmark opinion on July 19, the International Court of Justice declared Israel's decades-long occupation of Palestinian land "illegal" and called for the evacuation of all existing settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala