A Palestinian shepherd was assaulted and his livestock attacked by Israeli settlers near the town of Sika on Saturday, in yet another act of aggression deepening fears across rural communities in the occupied West Bank.
Muharib al-Akimi, a resident of Hebron, said the violence began early in the morning when a settler stormed his pasture and struck his flock.
As Akimi rushed to protect his sheep, the settler called for backup. A group of settlers soon descended, beating him and his daughters. He suffered bruises across his body. They destroyed his phone to prevent him from filming the attack.
Akimi identified the assailant as a settler from an outpost near Dura, known in the area for previous assaults on local Palestinians.
In a separate incident the same day, Israeli forces shot 58-year-old Raid Shaban Abu Sami at a checkpoint northwest of Hebron.
The Palestinian Red Crescent said the man was taken to a nearby hospital after being hit in the foot with live ammunition. Following the shooting, the Israeli military sealed off both directions of the Fara al-Heva highway, halting movement in the area.
Later that night, troops raided homes in Halhul, a town north of Hebron.
Two Palestinians were arrested.
Residents reported Israeli forces fired tear gas and stun grenades at homes and those who protested the incursion.
The Bedouin Rights Defense Organization condemned what it described as an ongoing policy of forced displacement.
The group said 212 Bedouin communities in the West Bank are facing systematic attacks including gunfire, house demolitions, and raids targeting their cattle and sheep – their main source of livelihood.
The group also accused the international community of failing to hold Israel accountable, saying the lack of consequences continues to fuel settler violence.
According to the PLO’s Separation Wall and Settlements Resistance Council, Israeli settlers and forces have committed over 16,000 violations in the West Bank since the start of 2024.
These include dozens of land seizures, with the number of settlers living illegally on occupied Palestinian land now estimated at more than 770,000.
