Dozens of Israeli settlers rioted in the West Bank city of Huwara on Sunday night, setting fire to suspected Palestinian property, hours after two Israeli brothers were shot dead there in a terrorist attack.
The Palestinian Health Ministry said a man was shot dead during unrest in the town of Za’tara, south of Huwara and near the settlement of Kfar Tapuach.
It was not immediately clear whether he was shot dead in the clashes by settlers or by Israeli troops.
Palestinian media reports released footage of burning houses and cars, claiming they were set ablaze by settlers rampaging after the killing of Hillel and Yagel Yaniv in the town, near Nablus, earlier in the day.
At least 15 houses were reportedly damaged and more than 25 cars were set on fire.
In addition to 37-year-old Sameh Aqtash, who was shot dead, the Palestinian Health Ministry said 20 were being treated in hospitals for tear gas and smoke inhalation. One was seriously injured after being hit in the head with a rock and another man was slightly injured after being hit with a metal bar.
The Palestinian Red Crescent said its medics treated 98 people injured in the clashes with settlers and three ambulances were attacked.
According to the demonstrators, border police tried to disperse the crowd with tear gas.
The Israel Defense Forces said that “violent unrest that erupted in several locations” in the West Bank was “fighted” by troops and police without identifying those involved.
Magen David Adom emergency services said its medics were treating two 16-year-olds suffering from tear gas inhalation at nearby Yitzhar Junction.
The protesters said they were urging Israeli security forces to deal with “terror hot spots” in the area.
There were no reports of arrests.
Early Sunday, shortly after the deadly shootout, at least three houses in the city were set on fire by settlers and one Palestinian was stabbed, according to rights group Yesh Din.
The Deputy Head of the Samaria Regional Council, Davidi Ben Zion, called for Huwara’s “wiping out” in response to the attack.
“Here in Huwara, the blood of our children was spilled in the streets… Huwara must be wiped out today. Enough talk about building and strengthening settlements. The lost deterrent must return now, there is no room for mercy,” he said in a post on Twitter.
On Sunday evening Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a statement deploring the fatal shooting while urging Israelis to desist from revenge attacks.
“The IDF and security forces are currently searching for the killer,” Netanyahu said. “We will find him, we will catch him and we will bring him to justice.
“I ask while the blood boils and the wind blows – don’t take the law into your hands,” he added. “I ask you to let the IDF and the security forces do their job.”
President Isaac Herzog made a similar statement. “Taking the law into your own hands, fomenting riots and perpetrating violence against the innocent is not our style and I offer my strongest condemnation,” he said in a statement.
“We must allow the IDF, police and security forces to apprehend the despicable terrorist and restore order immediately,” Herzog added.
Also in response to the attack, dozens of settlers broke into the evacuated illegal Evyatar outpost and vowed to resettle the area.
Dozens of squatters had agreed to leave the mountain community in the northern West Bank under an agreement with the previous government in 2021 that would provide for a peaceful evacuation in exchange for the government agreeing to dispose of the illegal homes they had built during the 2020s Transports to carry out a survey of the land on the spot.
“We have a huge hole in our hearts”
Police increased their vigilance on Sunday afternoon and the military were supposed to step up forces to catch the gunman who carried out the attack on a highway through Huwara.
Esti Yaniv, the mother of Hallel and Yagel Yaniv, who were killed in the terrorist shooting, said nothing would fill the hole in her heart.
“We received a tremendous slap in the face from God,” Esti Yaniv said in a call with the youth of Har Bracha settlement, where the victims lived.
Esti and her husband Shalom Yaniv are the youth coordinators in the settlement.
“We’re trying to find the good things, the kindness, that we had a family Sabbath together, good conversations with the kids,” she said.
“We have a huge hole in our hearts,” Yaniv continued. “Nothing will close this hole, will it [settlement] Construction, no protest – nothing.”
The victims’ corneas were to be donated for transplantation, as both brothers had Adi donor cards.
Her funeral is expected to take place on Monday.
Brothers Hallel (left) and Yagel Yaniv, who were killed in a terrorist attack in the West Bank city of Huwara on February 26, 2023. (With kind approval)
The Israel Defense Forces said the Palestinian gunman fired at point-blank range at the Yanivs’ car on Route 60 and then apparently fled the scene on foot.
Graphic footage of the attack showed the victims’ car riddled with bullets. Troops at the scene found 12 nine-millimeter grenade casings, which charged the attacker used a handgun or makeshift submachine gun.
An initial investigation into the shooting suggested the gunman took advantage of a freeway traffic jam to carry out the attack.
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant ordered the IDF to step up operations in the West Bank “with the aim of expanding defense operations in the settlements and on the roads,” his office said in a statement after conducting an assessment with senior defense officials.
“Gallant directed the security forces to focus their operational and intelligence efforts on apprehending the terrorists while taking all necessary measures, including offensive measures, to prevent further attacks,” she added.
Military chief Herzi Halevi, meanwhile, toured the scene of the attack on Sunday evening and ordered further reinforcements of forces in the area.
IDF Chief Herzi Halevi tours the scene of a shooting attack in the West Bank city of Huwara, February 25, 2023. (Israel Defense Forces)
Israeli police chief Kobi Shabtai said security forces were working tirelessly to apprehend the terrorist. “I trust the Shin Bet and IDF intelligence who will know how to reach the terrorist,” Shabtai said in a statement.
“We are in a very sensitive situation and it requires all of us to be on operational alert,” he said, adding that “the Israel Police Force is being placed on maximum alert to be at the highest level of operational readiness.” “
Huwara has long been a flashpoint, being about the only Palestinian city through which Israelis regularly travel to reach settlements in the northern West Bank.
There were several shootings against Israeli motorists on Route 60 in Huwara. There are plans to build a bypass road for settlers to avoid having to drive through the Palestinian city, but construction has stalled.
Israeli security forces secure the scene of a shooting attack in Huwara in the West Bank near Nablus on February 26, 2023. (Nasser Ishtayeh/Flash90)
In recent months, Palestinian gunmen have repeatedly attacked military posts, troops operating along the security barrier in the West Bank, Israeli settlements and civilians on the streets.
Tensions between Israel and the Palestinians ran high over the past year, with the IDF conducting near-night raids in the West Bank amid a series of deadly Palestinian terrorist attacks.
A series of Palestinian terrorist attacks in Jerusalem in recent weeks has killed 11 people and seriously injured several others.
Over 60 Palestinians have been killed since the beginning of the year, most of them in attacks or clashes with security forces, but some were innocent civilians and others may have been killed in circumstances under investigation.
In response to the recent terrorist attacks, there has also been a significant increase in settler attacks on Palestinians. Israeli settlers set fire to a number of Palestinian cars in the village of Burin near Nablus on Saturday.
Sunday’s attack came as Israeli and Palestinian officials held a meeting in Jordan to restore calm in the West Bank and Gaza Strip amid deadly violence.