Settlers Attack Palestinian Families in Area Under Palestinian Administration

A resident recognized a black pickup truck and an accompanying ATV when they arrived in front of his tent last weekend in the West Bank hamlet of Al-Awsaj. The vehicles carried seven Israeli settlers whom he had also recognized from prior attacks. The resident, 45, had moved his wife, children and extended family to the location after abandoning his home of more than 40 years.

The family was among the last of more than two dozen households to leave their village in January after repeated attacks by settlers wielding assault rifles. The settlers had even established a base in the middle of the neighborhood. With nowhere else to go, the family erected a tent in Al-Awsaj, described as a sun-bleached stretch of land deep in territory under Palestinian administration.

The same settlers appeared at the tent site and the attack began immediately. The recently displaced families sheltered in their tents as the resident stood outside. Settler violence has grown commonplace in the West Bank in recent years. The incidents form part of a campaign of harassment, abuse and forced displacement.

Since Israel captured the West Bank in the 1967 Middle East war, more than 700,000 Israelis have settled in the area among more than three million Palestinians. The latest attack occurred in an area where Israel agreed to Palestinian self-governance.

The resident held on until the end before uprooting his family. He had fled after settlers repeatedly targeted his village. The move to Al-Awsaj was an attempt to find safety in territory under Palestinian administration. The return of the same individuals to the tent site last weekend sent fear through the displaced families.

The event illustrates how settler activity has extended into zones designated for Palestinian self-rule.