Yitzhar settlers raid south Nablus village amid escalated attacks

NABLUS,– Israelis from the Yitzhar settlement raided the Orif village, south Nablus, Monday morning and set fire to a Palestinian’s car.

The assailants wrote threats against Palestinians and villagers on the walls during the storming, eyewitnesses said.

Locals said settlers have recently stepped up violence against them and their property, adding that they fear this year’s olive season could be crippled by settler attacks as in previous years.

Yitzhar settlers, who daily attack neighboring villages such as Burin, Hawara, and Orif, are some of the most violent settlers.

In another incident, Israeli settlers on Monday seized Palestinian agricultural land in Duma village, south of Nablus.

Local sources said that the settlers bulldozed the land and prepared it for cultivation, adding that the settlers only a few days ago had seized tens of dunums of Qaryut village also in Nablus district.

Meanwhile, the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) rounded up six “wanted” Palestinian citizens in various West Bank areas on Sunday night.

In a separate development, Israeli radio reported that mortar shells fired on Monday from the Gaza Strip landed near the Sha’ar Hanegev regional council in west Negev.

No injuries were reported, the radio said.