Israel Kills Palestinian Man, Approves 126 Illegal Settler Units in West Bank Outpost

January 1, 2026 News
Khattab Mohammad Ismail Al-Sarhan Daraghmeh, 26,  was shot and killed by Israeli occupation forces. (Photo: via social media)

By Palestine Chronicle Staff  

Dozens of Palestinians were also detained in wide-scale raid and arrest campaigns in towns and villages.

Israeli occupation forces shot and killed a young Palestinian man on Thursday, south of Nablus, while Israel moved to approve the construction of 126 illegal settler homes in the Sa-Nur settlement outpost in the northern occupied West Bank.

Khattab Mohammad Ismail Al-Sarhan Daraghmeh, 26,  was shot near the southern entrance to the village of Al-Lubban ash-Sharqiya, the official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported. The Israeli army is withholding his body.

Another young man was also shot and injured as he attempted to assist Daraghmeh.

Dozens Detained

Israeli occupation forces also detained dozens of Palestinians, mostly former prisoners, in several towns and villages in the Ramallah and al-Bireh governorate early on Thursday morning, WAFA reported. A child was also detained, the report stated.

In the Jalazone refugee camp, several homes were raided and eight Palestinians detained.

In Beitunia, west of Ramallah, occupation forces detained former prisoner Ahmed Harish after blowing up the door of his home and firing a gas grenade inside, WAFA reported. Harish and his brother, Muhammad, were assaulted during the raid.

Israeli occupation forces also raided the al-Amari refugee camp and detained a young man.

Elsewhere, six Palestinians were detained after their homes were raided in the town of Deir Abu Mash’al, west of Ramallah. In the village of Abu Shkheidem, north of Ramallah, Israeli forces detained another released prisoner Issa al-Badawi Shalalda, while in the town of Nilin, Nizar Al-Khawaja and brothers Omar Talal Surur and Khaled Talal Surur were detained.

The Israeli army also stormed and raided the village of Kobar, where they detained three Palestinians.

In the town of Aboud, yet another released prisoner, 60-year-old Ibrahim Mahmoud Abdel Majid, was detained, and in Al-Mazra’a Al-Gharbiyya, another former prisoner was detained.

In the village of al-Mazra’a al-Qibliya (Mazra’a al-Nubani), occupation forces detained a 16-year-old youth. They also raided the village of ‘Arura, north of Ramallah, and detained released prisoner Ahmad Ihsan Khasib.

Homes Demolished

Israeli occupation forces on Thursday also detonated a residential apartment in Nablus and arrested four Palestinians, according to WAFA.

The news agency reported that occupation forces surrounded an apartment belonging to the Hasiba family, and detonated explosives inside after arresting Rami Hasiba and his son, Ahmed.

Occupation forces also raided the Old City of Nablus, stormed a house in the Yasmina neighborhood, and arrested Mo’men al-Dabik. Another Palestinian, Hani Abu Leil, was also detained after his home was raided in the Old Askar refugee camp east of the city.

Israeli occupation forces also continued on Thursday to demolish residential homes in Nur Shams refugee camp, while deploying additional reinforcements in Tulkarm, the Quds News Network (QNN) reported.

Settler Attacks

Illegal Israeli Jewish settlers attacked a farm in the Al-Masoudiya plain, near the village of Burqa, northwest of Nablus, on Wednesday evening, WAFA reported.

‘Illegal’ – UK Condemns Israel’s Approval of 19 New Illegal West Bank Settlements

Local activist Dhiab Hajji, who is also a resident of Al-Masoudiya, told WAFA that scores of illegal settlers attacked a farm belonging to the Saleh family, destroying security cameras and light fixtures.

Illegal Settler Units Expansion

On Wednesday, Israel approved the construction of 126 settler homes in the Sa-Nur settlement outpost in the northern West Bank, which was evacuated in 2005 under a unilateral disengagement plan, Israeli media reported.

The High Planning Council, which operates under the Civil Administration, approved a detailed plan allowing illegal Israeli Jewish settlers to return to Sa-Nur, according to Channel 7, the Anadolu news agency reported.

Sa-Nur was evacuated in 2005 as part of Israel’s unilateral disengagement plan, carried out by the government of then–Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, which removed Israeli settlements and military bases from the Gaza Strip and four outposts in the northern West Bank.

Disengagement Law

In March 2024, the Knesset voted to repeal the disengagement law by passing legislation known as the “Cancellation of the Disengagement Law.”

Channel 7 said the plan is expected to take effect within about two months, enabling illegal settlers to return to Sa-Nur.

On December 23, far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich instructed the High Planning Council to convene to discuss approval of the 126 units. At the time, the public broadcaster KAN quoted him as saying the decision corrects what he called a “historic injustice” and advances the Zionist vision “on the ground.”

Palestinian authorities have for decades called on the international community to pressure Israel to halt settlement construction in the occupied West Bank, which the United Nations considers illegal under international law.

Since Israel launched its genocidal war on Gaza on October 7, 2023, Palestinian officials say Israeli measures aimed at annexing the West Bank have intensified, including home demolitions, forced displacement and settlement expansion.

Escalating Attacks

The Israeli escalation across the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, has killed at least 1,104 Palestinians, wounded about 11,000 others and led to the arrest of more than 21,000 people.

Israeli Attacks Destroy Over 8,000 Olive Trees in One Week – Nearly $7M in Losses

Formal Israeli annexation of the West Bank would effectively end the viability of a two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, envisioned in multiple UN resolutions.

Last July, the International Court of Justice issued a landmark opinion that declared Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory illegal and called for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

(PC, WAFA, Anadolu)

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1 Comment

  1. zionists can approve a million settlements IT IS OF NO CONSEQUENCE… they are approving them on LANDS THEY WILL NEVER OWN!!! THE DAY is coming, and SOONER than they think, when just as in their so-called security zone in southern LEBANON … the zionists WILL BE moved OUT of every settlement and those homes WILL BE GIVEN to PALESTINIAN FAMILIES!!!… SO let the zionists build them well and make them beautiful… for their FUTURE PALESTINIAN OWNERS !!!!!

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