12 Injured in Settler Attacks as Israel Approves New West Bank Settlements

At least 12 Palestinians were injured Friday in multiple settler attacks across the occupied West Bank, according to local authorities. The assaults came a day after Israel’s security cabinet approved plans for 13 new settlements in the Binyamin area.

In Khan al-Ahmar east of Jerusalem, settlers attacked the Bedouin village of Tabna. Two residents were injured after being rammed by a motorcycle, while others were sprayed with pepper spray. Israeli forces later arrested four Palestinians following clashes over attempted livestock theft. The area remains a focal point of settlement expansion, with Palestinian officials warning that displacement there would sever geographic continuity between northern and southern West Bank.

In Yarza near Tubas, seven Palestinians were beaten by settlers while inspecting abandoned homes. Two were hospitalized, while others were detained by Israeli forces. In Idhna near Hebron, three Palestinians were injured in attacks carried out under army protection. One youth was shot in the neck with a rubber-coated bullet, while two elderly men sustained bruises resisting livestock theft. The army also established a new military post in the nearby Karisa area.

In Wadi al-Sha’ar near Luban al-Sharqiya, settlers opened fire after residents burned a tent in a settlement outpost, following the blockade of a vehicle and closure of the village entrance.

Settlement expansion continues to surge. The Palestinian research center “Madar” reported that outposts rose from an average of eight annually between 2012–2022 to 32 in 2023, 62 in 2024, and 86 in 2025. Israeli media revealed plans by settler groups to target even Area A, under full Palestinian control, in violation of the Oslo Accords.