Although local residents managed to extinguish the flames, the fire caused significant damage to the mosque.
Early Friday morning, illegal Jewish settlers set fire to the Bar Al-Walidain Mosque in the town of Marda, near Salfit in the northern occupied West Bank, also leaving racist slogans on the walls, including ‘Death to Arabs’.
Eyewitnesses reported that settlers entered the eastern neighborhood of Marda, broke one of the mosque’s gates, and threw incendiary materials inside.
Although local residents managed to extinguish the flames, the fire caused significant damage to the mosque, Al-Jazeera reported.
The town of Marda, adjacent to the illegal settlement of Ariel and surrounded by a wire fence, has been under near-constant siege with its entrances frequently closed by Israeli military gates since October 7, 2023.
Footage circulating online shows Israeli settlers burning a mosque in the town of Marda, Salfit District, south of #Nablus in the #WestBank.
Israeli settlers, IOF soldiers, and even officials have continuously violated religious sites in Gaza, the West Bank, and occupied… pic.twitter.com/TKy8Iv97Pd
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) December 20, 2024
The attack on the mosque comes amid an escalation of violence in the West Bank, where Israeli forces and settlers have intensified their actions against Palestinians.
Official Palestinian sources report at least 822 fatalities and around 6,500 injuries in the occupied West Bank since the conflict began.
Falah Badah, the head of Marda’s village council, condemned the attack as barbaric, noting it was part of a broader pattern of assaults on places of worship in the West Bank and occupied Jerusalem, according to Al-Jazeera.
He accused the Israeli army of actively supporting these actions by maintaining a tight siege around the town under false pretenses.
The Palestinian Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs called for international intervention to condemn the attack and hold the perpetrators accountable.
Illegal settlers set fire to Bar Al-Walidain Mosque in Marda, north of Salfit.
Racist graffiti was also left on the walls. Locals extinguished the flames. Palestine calls for UN protection against “organised settler violence.”#WestBank #Marda pic.twitter.com/26MzryLBGC
— British Pakistani Index (@PakistaniIndex) December 20, 2024
In its monthly report for November, the ministry detailed a series of violations against religious sites, including frequent raids on Al-Aqsa Mosque and the prevention of the call to prayer at the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron (Al-Khalil).
Additionally, several mosques have been damaged or demolished across the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
The Al-Shiyah Mosque in Jabal al-Mukaber was recently destroyed, while illegal Jewish settlers desecrated the Khirbet Marah al-Baqar Mosque in Dura.
Other mosques, including those in Nur Shams and Tulkarm camps, have also sustained damage from Israeli occupation forces.
The ministry warned that these attacks on religious sites represent a dangerous escalation and called on the global community to act swiftly to protect places of worship and the Palestinian communities under threat.
(PC, AJA)
