Palestinian village patrols nightly against Israeli settler attacks

As night falls over Sinjil, a village northeast of Ramala in the West Bank, a group of about twenty Palestinian men gather around a bonfire. The flickering flames serve as a visible warning to nearby Israeli settlers: the villagers are prepared to defend themselves.

This nightly vigil began shortly after the Israeli offensive in Gaza commenced in October 2023, a direct response to a perceived increase in violent settler incursions. "The situation we are experiencing is unprecedented. Three times settlers stole sheep from us and entered our homes," Jadra Dar Jalil, an elderly resident, told EFE, recounting the loss of livestock.

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The situation we are living through, we have never lived through before. Three times (the settlers) stole sheep from us and entered the house.

Near their isolated home, overlooking a valley, the vigilantes' sparse belongings include a thin mattress, a worn rug, and a makeshift weight machine. "When you have a stick for herding sheep, the soldiers say you will use it to hit them," one of Jadra's sons explained. He described how soldiers and settlers, some of whom are active military or reservists, pressure Palestinians to leave their homes, claiming ownership. This combined pressure, according to international law, is gradually emptying the occupied West Bank of its Palestinian population.

The villagers recall the deaths of Amer Rabee, a 14-year-old Palestinian-American killed by soldiers in April 2025, and two other young men, one also American, who were beaten and shot by settlers near Sinjil months later. The night of July 17th saw masked settlers descending the hillside towards the village. Vigilantes attempted to block their advance by setting brush fires, leading to a confrontation where settlers and Palestinians threw stones. The Israeli army intervened, firing into the air and deploying tear gas against the Palestinians, ostensibly to protect the settlers.

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When one has a stick for herding sheep, the soldiers say you are going to use it to hit them. They beat us and tell us to leave our homes saying they are not ours.