Dozens of masked and armed Israeli settlers descended upon the Palestinian town of Jit in the occupied West Bank on Thursday, setting houses aflame and killing at least one Palestinian in what human rights advocates and the president of Israel have labeled as a pogrom.
At least 100 Israeli settlers entered the village at night, some outlets reported, burning homes and cars, shooting at Palestinians and damaging water tankers. Photo and video from the attack show the fire spread across the town, with dark plumes of smoke hanging in the air. Settlers threw a firebomb at a house while a family was inside, Haaretz reported, citing a “security source.” The family survived, but the house was damaged badly.
One man, 23-year-old Mahmoud Abdel Qader Saddam, was shot and killed by settlers in the attack, and another Palestinian was critically wounded by gunfire, Palestinian health officials said. Others were wounded by stones thrown by settlers.
“They were masked, dressed in black, armed and some had knives,” Jit resident Hassan told Haaretz. “It seemed planned. They didn’t look like children, they looked like adults. When I went outside to see what was happening, they attacked me with teargas. They torched my car and smashed another one, and then they continued into the village, after attacking more cars nearby. The army arrived about an hour later, they took their time and let them do whatever they wanted.”
Israeli officials have supposedly rebuked the attack in statements. But officials did nothing to stop it as it was ongoing; so far, no arrests have been made from the attack other than one Israeli who was taken into custody for allegedly assaulting a police officer. He was released shortly after.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog said that the attack was a “pogrom”; Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the riots by, in effect, saying that they should have been carried out by Israeli occupation forces and implying that the Palestinians in the village are terrorists.
Even Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich condemned the riot — but only to seemingly advance his own extremist mindset. He said without evidence that those who carried out the attack do not represent Israeli settlers at large — despite the fact that Israeli settlers supported by Smotrich have carried out similar attacks for many years. “We are building and developing settlements in a legal and official manner,” Smotrich wrote on social media, in a blatant lie that goes against the decisions of the International Court of Justice.
Jit is next door to the illegal Israeli settlement of Kedumim, where Smotrich lives. Smotrich has been leading Israel’s charge into the West Bank and has been growing its illegal settlements in the West Bank at a pace not seen in decades in recent years.
It’s unclear why this particular attack drew ire from Israeli officials when, according to UN human rights officials, there have been at least 1,250 attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank since October that have not prompted similar responses. By not stopping it while it was happening, however — and by allowing settlers to commit hundreds of attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank with impunity — Israeli officials are effectively sponsoring such assaults, human rights groups and advocates said.
“This terrorism is part of the ongoing ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people. It is sponsored by the government, led by cabinet ministers, and protected by the Israeli occupation forces. It must be condemned and called for what it is: State-sponsored terrorism,” said Laith Arafeh, Palestinian ambassador to Germany.
A spokesperson for the UN human rights office said that the riot is “not an isolated attack” and only happened as a result of impunity enjoyed by Israeli officials for attacks on the West Bank.
The death toll in the West Bank has soared since October, when Israel began its current genocidal assault in Gaza. The UN reports that Israeli forces and settlers have killed over 600 Palestinians, including at least 140 children, in the West Bank since October, a record death toll in the West Bank this amount of time. Last year was already the deadliest year for Palestinians in the West Bank prior to October 7.
Help us Prepare for Trump’s Day One
Trump is busy getting ready for Day One of his presidency – but so is Truthout.
Trump has made it no secret that he is planning a demolition-style attack on both specific communities and democracy as a whole, beginning on his first day in office. With over 25 executive orders and directives queued up for January 20, he’s promised to “launch the largest deportation program in American history,” roll back anti-discrimination protections for transgender students, and implement a “drill, drill, drill” approach to ramp up oil and gas extraction.
Organizations like Truthout are also being threatened by legislation like HR 9495, the “nonprofit killer bill” that would allow the Treasury Secretary to declare any nonprofit a “terrorist-supporting organization” and strip its tax-exempt status without due process. Progressive media like Truthout that has courageously focused on reporting on Israel’s genocide in Gaza are in the bill’s crosshairs.
As journalists, we have a responsibility to look at hard realities and communicate them to you. We hope that you, like us, can use this information to prepare for what’s to come.
And if you feel uncertain about what to do in the face of a second Trump administration, we invite you to be an indispensable part of Truthout’s preparations.
In addition to covering the widespread onslaught of draconian policy, we’re shoring up our resources for what might come next for progressive media: bad-faith lawsuits from far-right ghouls, legislation that seeks to strip us of our ability to receive tax-deductible donations, and further throttling of our reach on social media platforms owned by Trump’s sycophants.
We’re preparing right now for Trump’s Day One: building a brave coalition of movement media; reaching out to the activists, academics, and thinkers we trust to shine a light on the inner workings of authoritarianism; and planning to use journalism as a tool to equip movements to protect the people, lands, and principles most vulnerable to Trump’s destruction.
We urgently need your help to prepare. As you know, our December fundraiser is our most important of the year and will determine the scale of work we’ll be able to do in 2025. We’ve set two goals: to raise $145,000 in one-time donations and to add 1489 new monthly donors by midnight on December 31.
Today, we’re asking all of our readers to start a monthly donation or make a one-time donation – as a commitment to stand with us on day one of Trump’s presidency, and every day after that, as we produce journalism that combats authoritarianism, censorship, injustice, and misinformation. You’re an essential part of our future – please join the movement by making a tax-deductible donation today.
If you have the means to make a substantial gift, please dig deep during this critical time!
With gratitude and resolve,
Maya, Negin, Saima, and Ziggy