Villagers from Turmus Ayya, a village to the northeast of Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank, were able to foil attempts by Israeli settlers to take over Palestinian-owned land near the village, on Friday, said the village mayor.
Rasmi Shehadeh said, according to WAFA, that a group of settlers from the illegal settlements of Adi-Ad and Shilo, nearby, and who were escorted by Israeli army, stormed into an area near the village and assaulted farmers who were working on their own land.
He said the farmers were able to compel the settlers to leave the land, before the soldiers attacked the farmers with teargas and rubber-coated rounds.
Settler violence against Palestinians and their property is routine in the West Bank and is rarely prosecuted by Israeli authorities.
According to the Israeli rights group B’Tselem, “As the occupying force, Israel must protect the Palestinians in the West Bank. However, the Israeli authorities neglect to fulfill this responsibility and do not do enough to prevent Israeli civilians from attacking Palestinians, their property and their lands.”
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