BETHLEHEM, (PIC)
Three Palestinians were injured on Tuesday after settlers attacked the town of Tuqu’, southeast of Bethlehem. The attack involved direct assaults and an attempted property theft.
Local sources reported that settlers attacked residents in the “Al-Matl” area east of the town and attempted to seize their sheep. They then sprayed them with pepper spray, injuring three people who were taken to the town clinic for treatment.
The attack comes amid a noticeable escalation in settler and Israeli occupation forces’ assaults in the Bethlehem governorate. Several areas have witnessed similar incidents, including an attack in Khala’il al-Louz a few days ago, where residents were sprayed with pepper spray, as well as land bulldozing and the installation of mobile homes in the village of Marah Mu‘alla south of the governorate.
In a related context, the Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission recorded 99 attacks in the al-Khalil governorate within just a few weeks last March.
Towns and villages across the West Bank have also seen a sharp rise in violations, totaling 1,385 incidents between March 27 and April 2, 2026, according to field data.
A report issued by the Palestine Information Center “Mu‘ta” showed that Israeli occupation forces carried out 348 raids in various areas of the West Bank, including 229 home invasions and searches, as well as 55 demolition and destruction operations targeting homes and property.
Meanwhile, Israeli occupation bulldozers began large-scale land-clearing operations on agricultural land north of Salfit in the northern West Bank, uprooting dozens of long-standing olive trees.
The Salfit Municipality said in a statement that occupation machinery began damaging agricultural land and uprooting trees under the pretext of military use, threatening the livelihoods of dozens of families and causing significant harm to the agricultural sector.
The municipality explained that the targeted area covers approximately 150 dunums and includes more than 600 mature olive trees, which form a key pillar of the local economy and a symbol of residents’ resilience and attachment to their land.
It also noted that occupation authorities had previously issued notices regarding these lands, while the Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission is pursuing the case legally by filing petitions to halt the land-clearing operations.
Data from the Commission showed that settlers carried out 443 attacks against Palestinians and their property between February 28 and March 28, including direct gunfire, arson attacks on homes and property, and attempts to impose new settlement realities on the ground.
These attacks resulted in the killing of nine Palestinians and the establishment of 14 settlement outposts, in addition to the destruction of agricultural land and the outbreak of fires. This comes amid ongoing escalation in the West Bank since October 2023, which has led to the killing of more than 1,140 Palestinians, the injury of around 11,750 others, and the arrest of nearly 22,000 people.
