Illegal Israeli paramilitary colonizers carried out coordinated arson attacks at dawn on Wednesday, burning two mosques in the central West Bank towns of Jaljulia and Al‑Mazra’a al‑Nubani, north of Ramallah, in one of the most serious assaults on religious sites in recent months.
The attacks, which included racist and inciting graffiti, caused material damage and triggered confrontations as residents rushed to defend the mosques.
Local sources said a colonizer group infiltrated Jaljulia before setting fire to the town’s main mosque, igniting a blaze that damaged prayer carpets, interior walls, and copies of the Quran.
The attackers also spray‑painted racist and inciting slogans on the mosque’s exterior walls. Residents confronted the colonizers as they attempted to expand the fire, forcing them to flee toward nearby colonial outposts.
Shortly afterward, Israeli occupation forces invaded the town, firing toxic tear gas and stun grenades throughout the area. No injuries were reported, but the soldiers’ presence prevented residents from pursuing the attackers and added to the chaos surrounding the mosque.
In a parallel attack, another colonizer group invaded the nearby town of Mazari an‑Nubani and broke into the Al‑Farouq Mosque, where they set fire to parts of the building. The flames damaged several sections of the mosque and its contents before residents were able to extinguish the blaze.
The twin arson attacks follow a pattern of escalating assaults by illegal paramilitary colonizer groups targeting Palestinian religious sites, homes, schools, and property across the occupied West Bank.
Residents in both towns described the attacks as deliberate attempts to provoke fear and escalate tensions, carried out under the protection of Israeli military forces stationed in the surrounding area.
The Palestinian Ministry of Awqaf and Religious Affairs condemned the attacks, calling them a grave violation of international law and a direct assault on Islamic holy sites.
The ministry said the burnings represent a dangerous escalation and part of a systematic campaign targeting both Islamic and Christian religious institutions. It held the Israeli occupation authorities fully responsible for enabling colonizer violence and failing to prevent or prosecute such crimes.
The ministry urged the international community, including human rights organizations and UNESCO, to intervene immediately to protect religious sites and hold the perpetrators accountable.
It added that Palestinians remain committed to defending their holy places, stressing that such attacks will not undermine their resilience or their right to worship freely.
