The rights group said the blaze caused material damage to farming facilities. It also said that armed settlers pursued a Palestinian vehicle from the nearby al Ma’azi community, attempting to block the road and seize the vehicle before residents intervened and forced them to withdraw.
Assaults by the Israeli army and illegal settlers have escalated in the occupied West Bank since Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza began in October 2023. More than 1,116 Palestinians have been killed, about 11,500 wounded and roughly 22,000 arrested in the West Bank since, according to Palestinian data.
Palestinians warn that the escalation aims to pave the way for the formal Israeli annexation of the occupied West Bank, effectively ending prospects for a Palestinian state as outlined in UN resolutions.
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The international community and the UN consider the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, to be occupied Palestinian territory and regard Israeli settlements there as illegal under international law.
In a landmark opinion in July 2024, the International Court of Justice declared Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory illegal and called for the evacuation of all settlements in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.