By Fayha Shalash – Ramallah

Last Friday, Shamlawi went to his land when he was suddenly ambushed by five illegal Israeli Jewish settlers, including several youths, who beat him and smashed his phone when he tried to document the assault.

Palestinian farmer Aysar Shamlawi never imagined that a routine visit to his land would turn into a violent ordeal, when he was attacked by a group of illegal Israeli Jewish settlers.

Settler violence is escalating across the West Bank. In recent weeks alone, dozens of assaults have targeted civilians, homes, vehicles, and agricultural property. These attacks are part of a broader push to establish new settlement outposts and seize more Palestinian land.

Alongside this settler violence, the Israeli army is advancing parallel measures: demolishing homes, strengthening existing settlements, and establishing so-called buffer zones under the pretext of security—moves that also result in large-scale land confiscation.

According to eyewitness accounts, the Israeli military does little to stop settler attacks. On the contrary, it often participates in them. The army typically intervenes only when settlers appear to be under threat.

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Forcible Expulsion

Last Friday, Shamlawi went to his land in the town of Haris, near Salfit in the northern West Bank, to spray pesticides on his trees—part of his usual routine.

He was suddenly ambushed by five illegal Israeli Jewish settlers, including several youths, who beat him and smashed his phone when he tried to document the assault. They destroyed the pesticide sprayer he carried on his back, pelted his vehicle with stones, and shattered its windows.

“The attack was horrific and completely unprovoked,” Shamlawi told The Palestine Chronicle. “They expelled me from my own land as if they were the rightful owners. I barely escaped by getting into my car and fleeing. If I had stayed, they might have killed me with their brutality.”

The attack occurred near the Revava settlement, which, like many others, is built on confiscated Palestinian land. Similar assaults on farmers in the area have become alarmingly frequent.

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Asked how the Israeli army responded, Shamlawi said, “Thank God they weren’t there. If they had been, they would have accused me of attacking the settlers on my own land. I might have been arrested for simply defending myself.”

At the same time, the Israeli military has been carving out a buffer zone along the main road in Haris, bulldozing at least 65 dunams and uprooting more than 4,000 olive trees owned by local residents—again under the pretext of security.

“Settlers from several settlements are gathering to attack the town intensively, with the aim of intimidating residents and seizing their lands. They arrive on bicycles and ATVs and roam our lands, which we are only allowed to access with great difficulty,” he explained.

Between October 2023 and October 2024, 43 new settlement outposts were established in the West Bank—most of them agricultural—compared to a previous average of just seven per year over the past 30 years, according to the Israeli NGO Peace Now

Outposts are settlements established in violation of Israeli law, but with the tacit approval and often actual support of Israeli authorities.

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These outposts are illegal under Israeli law, yet they continue to receive tacit approval and, increasingly, direct support from Israeli authorities.

Peace Now reports that the Israeli government funded these outposts with NIS 28 million ($7.5 million) in 2023 and allocated NIS 75 million ($20 million) in 2024. In addition, eight outposts were retroactively legalized—five of which are now designated to become formal settlements—and NIS 7 billion ($1.9 billion) was earmarked for settlement road infrastructure.

Sudden Settlement

The town of Sinjil, north of Ramallah, has also come under intense settler assault. The aim, locals say, is to establish a new outpost in Area B—territory that, under the Oslo Accords, is meant to be under Palestinian civil control.

Last week, 49-year-old Wael Ghafri was killed by Israeli forces after attempting to confront settlers who were setting fire to his facility. Soldiers fired several tear gas canisters at him, causing him to suffocate.

That same day, another Palestinian man was shot—his wound so severe that the bullet entered his back and exited through his abdomen. He remains in critical condition.

According to Sinjil Mayor Mu’taz Tawafsha, settlers began descending on the southern part of the town just one week ago. They erected a tent—an initial step in establishing a permanent outpost.

“This area has never seen settlement activity before. It’s a vibrant part of the town, full of homes, roads, and agricultural rooms,” Tawafsha said.

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Residents did not stand by. They mobilized to protect their land. In response, settlers burned eight homes and four vehicles, attacked orchards and farming equipment, and injured multiple people.

Some of the burned homes were located in Area A, which is supposed to be under full Palestinian Authority control.

Israeli soldiers were present and assisted settlers in suppressing local residents. During the violence, settlers also burned the tents of displaced Bedouin families from the Jordan Valley and stole 30 heads of cattle.

The hill the settlers are attempting to seize spans more than 2,000 dunams. Given the level of political and military support settlers enjoy, local officials fear the land may soon be lost.

Two days ago, the Israeli army began erecting an iron fence around Sinjil’s land, citing security concerns. The move could result in the seizure of an additional 8,000 dunams, permanently cutting off Palestinians from their farmland.

(The Palestine Chronicle)