Two Palestinians killed in clashes with settlers and Israeli forces in West Bank

Two Palestinians were killed and three seriously injured in a confrontation with Israeli settlers and security forces in a village near Ramallah, according to the Palestinian news agency WAFA. Palestinian witnesses reported that residents clashed with settlers, and Israeli security forces shot and killed two men, aged 53 and 26.

The Israeli military stated its forces responded with gunfire after Palestinians threw stones and concrete blocks at soldiers and police officers, injuring one officer. The military added that soldiers and police were dispatched after reports of settlers going to the area to "retrieve their livestock." Palestinians, however, claim settlers attempted to steal sheep, accompanied by Israeli soldiers and police. The Israeli army maintained its forces aimed to prevent clashes and escort the settlers out of the village. Neither account could be independently verified.

Israel occupied the West Bank and East Jerusalem in the 1967 Six-Day War. Approximately 700,000 Israeli settlers now live in these territories alongside 3 million Palestinians, who aspire to establish their own state. The situation has worsened significantly since the Oct. 7 "Hamas" terrorist attacks and the ensuing war in Gaza. The Palestinian Ministry of Health reports nearly 1,100 Palestinians have died in the West Bank since then due to Israeli military operations, armed clashes, or Palestinian attacks. Violence by radical Israeli settlers against Palestinians has also increased, with the army frequently accused of insufficient action against such assaults and rarely holding settlers accountable.