Several people were injured Saturday in a West Bank clash between Israeli settlers and Palestinians, as local homes, cars and olive groves were burned by alleged settlers in multiple incidents throughout the day, continuing a persistent trend.
A left-wing Israeli activist assisting the Palestinians in the West Bank told The Times of Israel that dozens of settlers reached the village of Mukhmas, northeast of Jerusalem, and the nearby Bedouin community of al-Ara’ara, where they set fire to homes and olive groves.
An illegal outpost was established in the area about five days earlier.
Video from the incident showed groups of settlers and Palestinians throwing stones at each other, with later footage showing settlers standing near houses that had been set on fire.
Clips also showed thick smoke and flames pouring out of the area.
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According to the activist, two Israeli women who were accompanying the Palestinians at the scene were injured by stones and evacuated to an Israeli hospital, one of whom separately confirmed the incident to The Times of Israel. Police later confirmed the information.
הצתת הבתים בהתיישבות הבדואית ליד מחמאס צפונית לירושלים הערב היא סופו של האירוע. תחילתו: עשרות מתנחלים שהגיעו ויידוי אבנים. שתי פעילות ישראליות נפצעו והגיעו לבי”ח ישראלי. בתיעוד נוסף נראית התקהלות פלסטינית ופלסטינים מיידים אבנים גם כן, גם כמה פלסטינים נפצעו מיידוי אבנים. המתנחלים… pic.twitter.com/I6NAOB1W2c
— Nurit Yohanan (@nurityohanan) October 25, 2025
Three Palestinians were also injured, apparently from stone-throwing, and made their way independently to receive medical treatment, another Israeli activist told The Times of Israel, confirming Palestinian reports.
Commenting on the incident, an IDF spokesperson told The Times of Israel that in addition to the two Israeli activists injured helping the Palestinians, two other Israelis — apparently settlers — were injured.
The spokesperson said that IDF soldiers, along with Border Police and police forces, arrived at the scene following reports of “Israeli civilians,” or settlers, arriving in the area.
“In the area, burnt olive trees and damaged property were identified. No casualties were reported,” the spokesperson claims, adding that “all Israeli civilians left the area” upon the arrival of the forces, but that clashes broke out “with several Palestinians.”
“During the confrontation, two Israeli civilians were lightly injured and received medical treatment at the scene, while two Israeli women who were accompanying the Palestinians evacuated themselves for medical treatment,” the IDF spokesperson said.
The IDF said forces “worked to restore order and disperse the clash.”
The Israel Police said a suspect had been arrested in connection with the arson attack, telling The Times of Israel: “While Binyamin Police Station officers were taking testimonies, they spotted a masked man emerging from one of the buildings. He was arrested on the spot. A nearby Israeli vehicle was also located and towed.”
Police said they would continue investigating the circumstances of the incident “until all those involved are brought to justice.”
דיווחים בסוכנות הידיעות של הרשות הפלסטינית “וואפא”: מתנחלים הציתו אוהלים של תושבי הפזורה הבדואית מצפון מזרח לירושלים@guy_telaviv pic.twitter.com/o4O821DnO6
— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) October 25, 2025
In an earlier incident overnight Friday-Saturday, the IDF and Palestinian officials said a group of settler extremists had attacked the village of al-Mughayyir, setting fire to at least three vehicles and clashing with Palestinian residents.
According to local leader Amin Abu Ali, the assailants first threw stones at Palestinian cars before entering the village north of Ramallah, where they torched vehicles. Speaking to the Palestinian Authority’s WAFA news agency, Abu Ali said the settlers only withdrew after being confronted by unarmed villagers.
There were no reports of injuries in that incident.
The Israel Defense Forces told The Times of Israel that troops, along with Border Police and Israel Police officers, were dispatched to the area of al-Mughayyir following reports of settler violence. According to the military, the forces worked to restore order in the area and prevent further clashes.
The military said several Israeli civilians were arrested and handed over to the Israel Police.
The aftermath of an Israeli settler militia attack on the village of Al-Mughayyir, northeast of Ramallah, at dawn today, where several vehicles were set on fire. pic.twitter.com/gEh0vwER4M
— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) October 25, 2025
In a third reported incident, WAFA said settlers allegedly attacked Palestinian olive pickers in the town of Aqraba, south of Nablus, leaving three Palestinians with minor injuries. The report said the assailants were armed and carried sharp tools during the assault.
The attacks come just days after al-Mughayyir and the nearby town of Turmus Ayya were targeted in similar incidents. During that earlier wave of violence, Jewish extremists once again assaulted Palestinian olive harvesters.
A video captured by US-based writer Jasper Nathaniel showed a masked individual striking 52-year-old Afaf Abu ‘Olia of al-Mughayyir on the head with a club on Sunday, October 19. Later footage showed her being lifted into a car with blood running down her face. The same assailant was then seen attacking two civil rights activists assisting Palestinian harvesters, reportedly injuring both.
As in Saturday’s incident, three vehicles were set ablaze at both locations.
In recent months, al-Mughayyir has become a flashpoint for such violence, with residents facing assaults on homes, agricultural lands and livelihoods.
Palestinian men check olive trees reportedly uprooted by Israeli soldiers using a bulldozer in the West Bank village of Al-Mughayyir, north of Ramallah, on August 24, 2025. (Zain JAAFAR / AFP)
The latest attacks follow a series of measures taken by the Israeli army in August, when thousands of olive trees in al-Mughayyir — covering roughly 300 dunams (74 acres) — were uprooted over three days following a shooting attack on Israeli civilians in the area carried out by a resident.
Palestinian reports said a three-day curfew was also imposed on the village during that period.
While the IDF later confirmed the actions, it denied they constituted collective punishment, despite comments from Maj. Gen. Avi Bluth, chief of the IDF Central Command, said al-Mughayyir would “pay a heavy price” for the attack.
In recent years, the olive harvest season, which is critical for the domestic economy of Palestinians living in rural towns and villages in the West Bank, has witnessed dozens of attacks by settler extremists against the olive growers and their laborers, in an apparent effort to make the industry non-viable.
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