TEL AVIV
Illegal Israeli settlers who seized Palestinian land boasted in a WhatsApp group about escalating violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, media reports said on Friday.
The Times of Israel reported that the illegal settlers shared a list of attacks carried out against Palestinians during the Hebrew calendar month of “Adar,” which ended Wednesday.
In a WhatsApp group named “News from Us,” the settlers said they have attacked the town of Mikhmas, northeast of occupied East Jerusalem, five times in a month, as well as carried out three attacks in Masafer Yatta in the southern West Bank and conducted raids on 26 Palestinian villages.
The group also boasted of injuring 37 Palestinians, setting fire to two mosques, and torching 16 homes and 19 vehicles.
Attacks by illegal Israeli settlers who seized Palestinian lands in the occupied West Bank have been increasing.
According to UN data, such attacks have reached their highest level in the past 20 years since records began.
Since Israel launched its assault on the Gaza Strip in October 2023, there has also been an increase in arrests, raids, and attacks against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.
The Israeli army has been criticized for turning a blind eye to attacks by extremist settlers, at times acting alongside them, and for committing rights violations by using excessive force against Palestinians in the region, which has exacerbated tensions and led to further violence in the West Bank.
*Writing by Merve Berker