At Least 6 Palestinians Injured in Israeli Settler Violence

Facts

• According to Palestine's Health Ministry, at least six Palestinians were injured during an attack on Monday by Jewish settlers in the northern West Bank town of Hawara, near Nablus, the same town through which settlers rampaged last month following the killing of two Israelis.¹
• The ministry stated that one of the six men wounded was hospitalized with serious injuries to the head, with Palestinian media reporting that the settlers physically assaulted Palestinians and set fire to homes and vehicles.²
• Israeli forces reportedly arrested a number of Israelis who were in the area. Later in the evening, Palestinians threw stones at settlers driving through the town, with four Israelis injured, according to Israeli media.³
• The violence comes only a few days after a gunman reportedly affiliated with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) shot two Israeli soldiers in the town on Saturday.³
• In last month's rampage, a Palestinian was shot dead by Israeli fire, while the Palestinian Red Crescent said that two others were shot and wounded, a third person was stabbed, and a fourth was beaten with an iron bar. Some 95 others were treated for tear gas inhalation.⁴
• The situation in the West Bank, Gaza, and Israel continues to deteriorate as violence worsens. Additionally, mass protests have broken out in Israel against the government's plans to overhaul the country's judiciary. Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu decided to delay the legislation regarding the judiciary on Monday.⁵

Sources: ¹Haaretz, ²Al Jazeera, ³Jerusalem Post, ⁴ITN, and ⁵USA Today.

Narratives

• Pro-Palestine narrative, as provided by Middle East Eye. This incident is reminiscent of last month's pogrom carried out by fanatic Jewish supremacists with the complete backing of the Israeli army and government. Even after domestic and international condemnation, the violence continues. The settlers' violence is just another element of the Zionist project to displace the Palestinian people since the movement's inception. Emboldened by international passivity after killing more Palestinians last year than in any other calendar year since the Second Intifada, the occupation is becoming even more violent.
• Pro-Israel narrative, as provided by Times of Israel. Of course, the settler violence in the West Bank is barbaric and monstrous, but one must keep in mind that such violence is a result of the Israeli government's failure to manage Palestinian terrorism. Netanyahu condemned what happened in Huwara last month, and so did many in his cabinet. Figures that showed support for the riots should be sidelined — Israel doesn't support such acts of violence, as it goes against the moral foundation behind the state's creation. Most Israelis want peace, and the actions of these settlers don't represent the rest of Israeli society.

Predictions