Israeli settlers torch vehicles, try to burn mosque in West Bank

JERUSALEM: Israeli settlers torched vehicles and attempted to set fire to a mosque in the occupied West Bank Sunday, Palestinian news agency reported, as the Israeli military deployed troops to quell what it described as violent riots by “Israeli civilians.”

According to the official Palestinian news agency Wafa, settlers carried out two attacks in the West Bank late on Sunday.

In the village of Burqa, east of Ramallah, a group of settlers set fire to a car, broke down the door of a mosque and set its entrance alight before fleeing, Wafa reported.

Witnesses told AFP that residents had managed to extinguish the blaze.

In a separate incident in the nearby village of Deir Dibwan, settlers set two vehicles on fire, Wafa reported.

The Israeli military confirmed it had dispatched forces to multiple locations in the West Bank following reports of arson and riots.

“A short while ago, the security forces were dispatched to several locations across the Binyamin Brigade area of responsibility following reports of arson and violent riots carried out by Israeli civilians,” the military said in a statement.

“The forces are currently operating at the various locations to disperse the riots, extinguish the fires, and prevent further friction.

“The security forces strongly condemn all acts of violence. The forces will continue to operate to maintain law and order in Judea and Samaria,” the military said, referring to the territory with its biblical name.

The violence comes just days after the United Nations warned that settler violence in the West Bank had reached record levels, with an average of six attacks daily causing casualties or damage.

More than 2,200 Palestinians have been displaced this year due to settler violence or access restrictions, the UN said. Hundreds more have been displaced due to home demolitions by Israeli authorities, it added.

More than 500,000 Israelis live in the West Bank – excluding annexed East Jerusalem – in settlements deemed illegal by the United Nations under international law.

Three million Palestinians also live there.

Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967.

Violence has escalated in the West Bank since the Gaza war, which was triggered by an unprecedented attack on Israel by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas on Oct 7, 2023.