A Palestinian dies in a West Bank settler attack that leaves 30 houses on fire

The assault on Turmus Aya follows several similar incidents after the death of four Israelis in an attack near a settlement

June 21 (EUROPA PRESS) –

At least one Palestinian has died this Wednesday due to an attack perpetrated by hundreds of Israeli settlers against the West Bank town of Turmus Aya, located in the north of the West Bank, after similar incidents during the last day after the death of four Israelis in an attack executed in the surroundings of the settlement of Eli.

“A martyr has arrived at the Palestinian Medical Complex from Turmus Aya after being shot in the chest,” the Palestinian Ministry of Health said in a brief statement posted on its Facebook social network account.

Shortly before, the mayor of Turmus Aya, Lafi Adib, had indicated in statements given to the Palestinian news agency WAFA that twelve Palestinians had been injured in the assault, perpetrated by around 400 Israeli settlers who had broken into the city, at the same time which has denounced that during the same 30 houses and more than 60 vehicles had been set on fire, in addition to several cultivated fields.

Thus, it has called on the international community to give international protection to the Palestinians residing in the town and has recalled that it is surrounded by several settlements and is the scene of daily small-scale attacks by settlers.

Witnesses cited by WAFA have indicated that several settlers have fired firearms during the assault and have added that they have been accompanied by agents of the Israeli security forces, without the Israeli authorities having yet ruled on what happened.

Hours earlier, the Palestinian government had denounced attacks perpetrated by settlers against several towns and criticized that “settler militias and their armed terrorist elements” are “expanding” their attacks against “unarmed Palestinian civilians.”

Thus, he asserted that he “condemns in the strongest terms” that “these bands of settlers are outside the law” and regretted that “no lessons have been drawn from the first crime in Huwara”, referring to the assault perpetrated in February by dozens of of settlers against this town, which resulted in one death and about a hundred wounded.

Increased tensions in recent months have resulted in the deaths of around 175 Palestinians and 25 Israelis, amid fears of a widespread outbreak of violence. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday that “all options are open” amid calls within the government coalition for a large-scale operation in the West Bank.