An Israeli settler was moderately wounded in a stabbing attack near the Palestinian village of al-Auja in the occupied Jordan Valley on Sunday. The 24-year-old settler was struck in the upper body along Route 90 outside a commercial area. The assailant, described as a Palestinian youth, fled the scene without harm.
Following the incident, Israeli forces launched an extensive operation in al-Auja, deploying helicopters, undercover units, and heavy military personnel. Security forces established checkpoints on major roads, conducted house searches, and imposed restrictive measures on nearby Palestinian communities.
The military activity appears to be part of a broader escalation amid ongoing tensions between settlers and Palestinians in the West Bank. For two weeks, Israeli settlers, supported by military personnel, maintained a blockade on three Palestinian homes in the Ras al-Ain area of Qusra, south of Nablus. The blockade involved cutting off water and electricity services, obstructing access roads, and preventing food deliveries to the families of Abu Ridi and Hassan. Reports indicate that Israeli forces repurposed one of the homes as a military post and damaged furniture by throwing it out of windows.
Additional military raids were reported in eastern Nablus near the Awarta checkpoint, with forces moving between the Old and New Askar refugee camps. On Sunday morning, Israeli forces detained six Palestinians in Qalqilya and five in Tulkarm during searches described as violent.
Meanwhile, settlers reportedly uprooted olive trees and grapevines belonging to the Shalaldeh family in the village of al-Minya, east of Bethlehem. These developments come in the wake of recent lethal incidents, including the shooting of 58-year-old Fathi Khazem by Israeli forces in his home in Jenin, and the fatal shooting of 17-year-old Karim Sanad Shalaldeh by settlers in Sa’ir.
Since October 2023, amid the intensified conflict in Gaza, Israeli military and settler-related violence in the West Bank has resulted in at least 1,182 Palestinian deaths, over 12,000 injuries, and approximately 24,000 detentions. The ongoing unrest coincides with continued U.S. military aid to Israel and diplomatic support amid Israeli officials’ calls for full annexation of Palestinian territories. Meanwhile, extremist settler groups are reported to operate with considerable autonomy, establishing unauthorized outposts that disrupt Palestinian communities and seize agricultural lands.