Israeli settlers torch homes and fields in fresh West Bank attack
Israeli settlers set fire to Palestinian homes, vehicles and farmland in the latest attack in the occupied West Bank on Monday.
The large-scale evening assault on the town of Jab’a, southwest of Bethlehem, left three homes torched. The properties belonged to Raafat Hilal Mashaaleh, Muhammad Musa Musa and Yusuf Ahmad Musa.
Mashaaleh told Middle East Eye that the attack began as his brother was helping their sister and her children into a car parked in the family garden.
A stone was thrown at the vehicle, and when he looked up he saw two men hurling rocks. Moments later, he realised there were around 50 assailants.
“Our priority at that moment was safety,” he said. “You need to get out safe, no matter your material losses, and protect lives.”
Mashaaleh retreated into his home but sustained injuries across his body, including to his neck and back. He said he heard the car’s windows smashing and that his brother’s young daughter had also been struck.
“My brother’s daughter is young… I thought that if they saw girls in the car, they would back off, but instead the videos prove how vicious they were, as they even attacked the children.”
He attempted to leave the house but was forced back as stones continued to strike the building.
Israeli settlers set Palestinian vehicles on fire in the village of al-Jab’a, southwest of Bethlehem. pic.twitter.com/KooMnfgbN5
— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) November 17, 2025
CCTV footage captured settlers entering the village, with some seen setting objects alight off-camera. Videos shared online show vehicles and homes engulfed in flames as residents tried to extinguish the fires.
Several vehicles were destroyed, including two belonging to brothers Musa and Ibrahim Ahmed Abu Lawha.
Mashaaleh said the fire spread rapidly once lithium batteries in the cars ignited. He later managed to put out the blaze with the help of neighbours.
‘I thought that if they saw girls in the car, they would back off, but instead the videos prove how vicious they were, as they even attacked the children’
– Raafat Hilal Mashaaleh, resident of Jab’a
“I had major losses, not minor ones, but thank God we were aware of the situation and acted just in time,” he said, adding that other residents had suffered even greater financial damage.
“There is danger on a daily basis – not just in my home but along our entire street.”
Dhiab Mashaaleh, head of the village council, told local media that significant material damage had been inflicted, though no injuries were reported.
“When I rewatch the footage from yesterday’s attack, the scenes were deadly,” Mashaaleh said.
“When it ended, it felt like a dream. I can’t fathom that we’re still alive.”
The Israeli military confirmed the attack and said a search for those involved was under way, though no arrests have been made.
Mashaaleh said this was the third settler attack on his home and one of dozens the town has endured recently.
“We are a peaceful people, minding our own business,” he said.
“We don’t even keep track of the news, to the point where the [settler] ambush took us by surprise because we didn’t have the latest details about the settlements.”
Fears of another Duma arson attack
Settler violence has escalated significantly over the past month, prompting concern within Israel from politicians who fear the growing number of attacks could trigger a Palestinian response.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned what he called “extremists” carrying out attacks in the occupied territory.
“I view with utmost seriousness the violent riots and the attempt by a handful of extremists, who do not represent the settlers in the occupied West Bank, to take the law into their own hands.”
He urged law enforcement authorities to bring those responsible to justice, adding that he “intends to deal with this matter personally” and would convene the relevant ministers as soon as possible to respond to what he described as a “dangerous phenomenon”.
Defence Minister Israel Katz voiced support for the continued expansion of illegal settlements in the West Bank, but insisted there would be “no tolerance for anyone who acts violently”.
Foreign Minister Gideon Saar also criticised the settlers, saying their actions “harm the State of Israel, disgrace Judaism, and cause damage to the settlement project.”
“They are not us. They are not the State of Israel,” he said.
According to Israel’s Channel 12 on Monday, the security establishment is attempting to stem the recent spike in settler violence, but “does not have enough tools” to do so.
One security official warned it was “only a matter of time before a family is burned again in their home, as happened in the town of Duma”.
The remark refers to a settler arson attack in July 2015 targeting the Dawabsheh family, which killed Saad Dawabsheh, his wife Riham and their infant son Ali. Four-year-old Ahmed, the sole survivor, suffered burns to 60 percent of his body and spent months in recovery.
Fears of similar deadly assaults have risen in recent years, as the occupied territory witnesses a sharp surge in settler attacks, particularly since Israel’s war on Gaza began in October 2023.
