Israeli settlers reportedly raided the Palestinian village of Bruqin in the northern West Bank in the early hours of Sunday morning in the second such incident in three days.
Bruqin has been targeted several times by settlers since earlier this month, when one of its residents carried out a shooting terror attack that killed Israeli Tzeela Gez as she headed to the hospital to give birth.
The Israel Defense Forces initially said there were no injuries or damage in what it depicted as a clash that developed between locals and Israelis in the Palestinian village, with both sides throwing stones at each other.
The Al Arabiya news outlet reported that several homes and vehicles were torched by settlers.
The Palestinian Wafa news agency reported that several homes were “targeted,” including at least one that was set alight. It did not report any injuries.
Residents told Al Arabiya that the IDF arrived on the scene as settlers were attacking, but did not intervene or carry out any arrests.
In response to a query, the IDF said in a statement that “violent friction” developed between Palestinians and Israeli citizens close to Bruqin, during which both sides pelted each other with stones.
The military said that as soon as it received a report of the clash, it sent forces to disperse the crowds and that there were no injuries or damage.
Footage shared on social media purportedly from the scene appeared to show smoke and flames coming from at least one building.
Eight Palestinians were reportedly wounded in a similar raid of Bruqin on Thursday.
Then, too, no arrests were made by authorities.
Palestinian media reported that five homes and five vehicles were set ablaze during that incident.
Footage showed several vehicles completely burned and homes partially set on fire.
Security sources told reporters that some 40 settlers took part in last week’s attack; the sources denied Palestinian reports that they also burned homes.
The settler assaults appeared to be carried out in retaliation for the deadly shooting of Gez earlier this month.
In the attack on May 14, near Bruqin and the West Bank settlement of Bruchin, a Palestinian terrorist opened fire from the side of a road, killing Gez, who was heading to the hospital to give birth, and wounding her husband.
The Israel Defense Forces on Wednesday confirmed it killed Naael Samarah, who carried out the deadly attack.
Settler violence has spiked since the October 7, 2023, Hamas onslaught in the south, which saw Hamas-led terrorists invade Israel, killing some 1,200 people and kidnapping 251.
Israeli authorities rarely arrest Jewish perpetrators in such attacks. Rights groups lament that convictions are even more unusual and that the vast majority of charges in these types of attacks are dropped.
Law enforcement and military responses to settler violence have faced mounting scrutiny amid concerns that members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s hardline right-wing cabinet are unwilling to tackle extremist attacks on Palestinians. Police officials have pushed back against the criticism.
Since October 7, 2023, 52 people, including Israeli security personnel, have been killed in terror attacks in Israel and the West Bank. Another eight members of the security forces were killed in clashes with terror operatives in the West Bank.
According to the Palestinian Authority health ministry, more than 950 West Bank Palestinians have been killed in that time. The IDF says the vast majority of them were gunmen killed in exchanges of fire, rioters who clashed with troops, or terrorists carrying out attacks.