Counterterrorism Operation Against Palestinians After Violence by Settlers

A house in Urif burned by settlers over the weekend. Photo by residents

On Friday, July 24, 2026, a group of armed settlers entered the village of Tell, located in Area B (the section of the West Bank administered by Israel and the Palestinian Authority). In the confrontation that developed following the incursion, four Palestinians and two Israelis were killed. Following this incident, a wave of raids and retaliatory attacks began: dozens of settlers raided the villages of Jit, Burin, Farta'a, Sarra, and Urif, setting fires, throwing stones at residential homes, and attacking residents. In the villages of Qusra and Kur, mosques were set on fire and hate graffiti was sprayed on the walls. 

The military classified what happened in the village of Tell as a terrorist attack perpetrated by Palestinians, despite the fact that it involved a planned, armed Israeli incursion into a Palestinian village. In its aftermath, a large-scale "counterterrorism" operation was launched in the northern West Bank, under which the military imposed a full curfew on the villages of Tell and Burin and closed the city of Nablus. Over the weekend, military raids were carried out on homes and Palestinian communities, and numerous entrances to communities in the Nablus, Ramallah, and Bethlehem areas were blocked. As a result of the road closures, difficulties were reported in evacuating people in labor and urgent medical cases to hospitals. More than 60 Palestinians were arrested. 

On Sunday, July 26, 2026, ACRI sent an appeal to IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir and Central Command Commander Avi Bluth. In the appeal, ACRI Attorneys Reut Shaer and Hila Sharon argue that the measures taken are serious infringements on freedom of movement, access to medical care, and other fundamental rights of the thousands of affected residents. International law imposes on Israel the obligation to protect the Palestinian population in the occupied territory from settler violence, and that the military must fulfill this obligation by acting against those who carry out the attacks—not against their victims. 

As the appeal states: "The imposition of collective punishment on Palestinian residents of the West Bank...is a direct continuation of the ideological aggression perpetrated by settlers, the consequences of which were entirely foreseeable. Instead of preventing the planned security escalation and protecting the safety and lives of West Bank residents, the military repeatedly participates willingly in...providing backing and encouragement for further settler attacks that will claim additional lives." 

ACRI’s appeal, July 26, 2026