Settler violence, a Hamas attack, and 18 deaths worsen the Israel-Palestine conflict

The UN issued a dire warning on Friday in response to a new outbreak of violence in the West Bank that is currently under Israeli occupation. Volker Turk, the UN’s high commissioner for human rights, warned that the most recent fatalities and violence, along with heated language, only serve to plunge Israelis and Palestinians farther into an abyss.

At least 18 individuals perished in the region this week as a result of intrusions by Jewish settlers, Palestinian outlaws, and Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

Israeli settlers were reportedly seen vandalizing a West Bank mosque in the Palestinian hamlet of Urif earlier this Wednesday, according to a report from the Israeli news site Haaretz.

One settler, wearing a mask, was spotted exiting the mosque with a Quran, which he subsequently tore up outside on the street. The event was denounced as an organized pogrom by the Israeli human rights group Yesh Din. “The army makes no attempt to halt the attacks of the settlers. The horrifying video shows that the settlers’ only goal is to start a riot by organizing pogroms, according to a statement from Yesh Din obtained by the Israeli news site.

After Muhanad Shehadeh, 26, and his buddy Khaled Sabah, 24, stormed a gas station outside a neighboring Jewish community on Tuesday, the Palestinian town of Urif came to light and became the most recent hotspot in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

These Palestinian guys were shot dead by a bystander and an Israeli army officer minutes after they murdered four Israelis and critically injured four more. It was subsequently discovered that they were connected to the terrorist organization Hamas, which governs the Gaza Strip.

According to Hamas, the strikes on the gas station were in reprisal for a Monday Israeli raid on the Jenin refugee camp that resulted in the deaths of six Palestinians.

Later on Wednesday, settlers tried to set fire to houses and the mosque in addition to setting a school on fire. According to the locals, the settlers came from the direction of the Yitzhar settlement to invade the community.

The two Hamas supporters were from Urif, according to reports.

Separately, Jewish settlers on Wednesday set fire to homes and automobiles in Turmus Ayya, West Bank, according to a report in Haaretz that cited security sources.

Following the settler shooting spree, clashes between Palestinians and security forces occurred, resulting in the shooting murder of Omar Ketin, 27, by one of the security forces.

Tom Nides, the US ambassador to Israel, blamed the West Bank violence on the settlers and said that “Washington would not stand by and watch the settler violence of recent days.” According to Nides, security organizations have urged Israel to take the required actions to stop such deadly attacks.