30 July 2018•Update: 30 July 2018
RAMALLAH, Palestine
Israeli settlers punctured the tyres of Palestinian vehicles and sprayed anti-Arab graffiti in a Palestinian village in the occupied West Bank on Monday, according to a local official.
A group of settlers raided Al-Mughayyir village, east of Ramallah, and damaged five Palestinian cars, Tawfiq Abu Naim, a member of the village’s local council, told Anadolu Agency.
He said the settlers also sprayed anti-Arab graffiti and death threats on the walls of several houses in the village.
"Settlers have threatened villagers with death if clashes between Palestinian youths and Israeli forces continue,” he said.
There was no comment from the Israeli military on the report.
Tension has mounted in the Palestinian territories since last December when U.S. President Donald Trump announced his decision to unilaterally recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
On May 14, the U.S. relocated its Israel embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, drawing condemnation from across the Arab and Muslim world and further inflaming passions in the Palestinian territories.
Since March, more than 150 Palestinians have been killed and thousands injured by Israeli army gunfire in the Gaza Strip during protests demanding an end to the decades-long Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands and lifting an 11-year blockade on Gaza.
Reporting by Qays Abu Samra:Writing by Mahmoud Barakat
