Israeli settlers torch mosque and property during West Bank raids

During a coordinated operation in the occupied West Bank, Israeli settlers ignited a mosque, an olive tree and a vehicle in the village of Mikhmas, according to the Palestinian news agency Wafa. They also defaced the mosque and surrounding buildings with racist graffiti. The same day, settlers assaulted a Palestinian boy in Beita, south of Nablus, while Israeli forces detained three Palestinians after a raid in Qalqilya and entered the village of Tammun, using tear-gas shells.

The incidents come amid a reported surge in settler-perpetrated pogroms since Israel launched its war on Gaza three years ago. Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have accused the Israeli authorities of facilitating such violence to expand control over Palestinian land. The broader context includes ongoing intimidation of Palestinian olive-harvesters, a vital source of income for many families in the region.