Settlers Torch Two Mosques in an Overnight West Bank Rampage
Israeli settlers set fire to two mosques in the occupied West Bank overnight and daubed “revenge” graffiti on their walls, in a fresh wave of rampages that also saw Palestinians attacked and cars torched. The violence followed a deadly gun battle near Nablus on Friday, and the Israeli military said its troops had arrived too late to arrest those responsible. Dozens of Palestinians were detained in overnight raids.
The arson attacks are the latest in a sharp escalation of settler violence that has accompanied the wider regional war. Palestinian officials condemned the mosque burnings as an attempt to drive communities from their land, while Israeli forces pressed sweeping raids in search of those behind Friday’s shooting, which killed two Israeli soldiers and four Palestinians. In Tel Aviv, some two hundred people protested against settler violence, and several were arrested. Watch whether the Israeli government moves to restrain the settlers or instead widens its own operations across the territory.