Rioters, some wearing masks, attacked a village in the West Bank on Aug. 15, burning cars and killing at least one person.
Another man was critically injured by their gunfire during the incident at the village of Jit, the Palestinian Authority Heath Ministry said.
Residents told reporters that at least a hundred rioters entered the village, shot live ammunition, burned homes and cars, and damaged water tankers. Video showed flames engulfing the small town, which residents said was left to defend itself without military help for two hours.
A few residents of the small town fought back at first, but then all the residents united to fight off the attack, one village resident, Sufian Jit, told reporters.
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said in an X post, in Hebrew, that police and army units intervened “within minutes of receiving the report” and removed the rioters from the village.
In a follow-up post, the IDF said it condemns incidents of this type, which “divert the IDF and the security forces from their main mission of thwarting terrorism and protecting the security of the residents.”
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The IDF said an Israeli citizen was arrested by security forces and turned over to the Israeli police.
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the riot and said he wanted it dealt with “with utmost severity.”
“I take seriously the riots that took place this evening in the village of Jit, which included injury to life and property by Israelis who entered the village,” he said in a post on X.
“Those who fight terrorism are the IDF and the security forces, and no one else,” he said. He said those responsible would be caught and prosecuted.
Israeli president Isaac Herzog also condemned the attack, as did defense minister Yoav Gallant, who said the settlers had “attacked innocent people.” He added they did not “represent the values” of Israelis who have settled in the West Bank.
Another who condemned the attack was Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, whose nationalist political party represents the West Bank and who has pursued a policy of expanding the areas where Jews live.
“The rioters tonight in Jit have nothing to do with the settlements and the settlers,” he said on X."They are criminals who should be dealt with by the enforcement authorities with the full severity of the law.
“We build and develop the settlements in a legal ... manner, back the IDF in its fight against terrorism, and strongly disapprove of any manifestation of anarchist criminal violence that has nothing to do with love of the land and settlement in it.”
The victim was identified as Rasheed Mahmoud Abed Al Khadier Sadah, 23. His funeral was held on Friday.
Mourners carry the body of Rasheed Mahmoud Sadah, 23, during his funeral in the West Bank village of Jit, near Nablus, Friday, Aug. 16, 2024. AP Photo/Nasser Nasser
Cease-Fire Talks
Internationally mediated cease-fire talks continued into their second day in Qatar on Friday. Hamas has still refused to show up, but Qatar and Egypt are negotiating on their behalf.Representatives of the two countries and the United States said they were presenting the two sides with a reconciliation proposal in line with principles outlined by President Joe Biden on May 31, 2024, and in UN Security Council resolution 2735.
“This proposal builds on the agreement points of the past week and fills the remaining gaps to allow for a rapid implementation of the agreement,” the statement said. Negotiators said the parties would meet again in Cairo in an effort to finalize the deal at the end of next week. They said that meanwhile, teams would continue working on technical details.
Negotiators are seeking accord on a three-phase plan in which Hamas would release hostages captured in the Oct. 7 attack that began the war in exchange for a lasting cease-fire, withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, and release of Palestinian prisoners.
The stakes of the negotiations have risen in expectations that Iran and its proxies will strike back at Israel for the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran on July 31. Israel has neither confirmed nor denied responsibility for the hit. The international community has been pressing Iran not to initiate a wider war. Iran is believed to be delaying reprisals to give the mediators in Doha, Qatar, time to reach a deal.
The IDF on Aug. 16 ordered new evacuations from areas in south and central Gaza previously designated as humanitarian zones. It said Hamas had used the areas as a base for firing mortars and rockets at Israel.
Gaza health authorities, which are controlled by Hamas, recently said the Palestinian death toll in the war had reached 40,000. The authorities do not distinguish between civilians and fighters. The IDF said recently that at least 17,000 of those were members of Hamas and that it had destroyed more than half of the terror group’s estimated strength of 30,000 at the war’s outset.
The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
