Injuries in Occupation and Settler Attacks in the West Bank and the Settlement Minister Storms Dura in Hebron

SadaNews - Two young men were injured by Israeli army fire near Jerusalem this evening, Sunday, while three others were injured in a settlers' attack in the northern West Bank, during which the Israeli settlement minister stormed Dura in Hebron.

Three people were injured on Sunday evening as a result of an attack carried out by settlers in the northern part of the occupied West Bank.

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society stated in a statement that its crews transported to the hospital "three injuries from a settler assault by beating in the village of Beit Lid near the city of Tulkarem".

Local sources reported that the attack occurred between the villages of Kafr Qaddum east of Qalqilya and Beit Lid east of Tulkarem, while eyewitnesses indicated that settlers attacked an area between the two villages before residents confronted them, resulting in injuries.

Two young men were injured by Israeli army fire while trying to cross the separation wall in the town of Al-Ram, north of occupied Jerusalem, amid a series of repetitive daily Israeli assaults.

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society mentioned in a statement that its crews transported to the hospital "two injuries from live ammunition to the young men while trying to cross the separation wall in the town of Al-Ram".

On an almost daily basis, injuries to Palestinians near the separation wall around Jerusalem and along the borders between the West Bank and Israel are repeated during attempts by Palestinians, mostly workers, to cross it in search of work inside Israel, which occupies their lands.

Data from the General Union of Palestinian Workers indicate that 44 Palestinian workers have been martyred by Israeli army fire, and more than 32,000 others have been detained, either inside workplaces or during their attempts to search for work since the onset of the war on Gaza, until October 28.

Since the start of the war on Gaza in October 2023, Israel has prevented Palestinian workers from returning to their workplaces, leading some to attempt to climb the separation wall, despite the risks involved.

Storming of Dura in Hebron

On Sunday, the settlement minister, Orit Strock, stormed the town of Dura in the southern West Bank, accompanied by dozens of soldiers and settlers, and participated in a Hanukkah celebration on top of Mount Tarusa, located in the town's lands, west of Hebron.

Eyewitnesses reported that the minister's and settlers' incursion targeted the summit of Mount Tarusa, and included candle lighting in honor of the Hanukkah holiday, which began last Sunday evening and continues until Monday.

Witnesses added that the Israeli army closed a vital road linking the town of Dura with the towns of Deir Samet and Beit Awa, located to its west, preventing residents' movement in both directions from Sunday afternoon until evening.

Before carrying out the incursion, the Israeli army forced dozens of residents to close their businesses in the towns of Deir Samet and Beit Awa, which are located along the route of the military convoy, from 1 PM to 5 PM local time, according to witnesses.

Photos and video clips show Strock delivering a speech during a settlement event at the top of the mountain.

Palestinian sources indicated that the site where the incursion occurred had been used as a military camp by the Israeli army during the stone intifada, before being evacuated in the mid-1990s, and the army returned to use it again with the outbreak of the Al-Aqsa intifada, and was evacuated once again after its conclusion.

Despite the evacuation of the site as a military point, the Israeli army and settlers have repeatedly stormed it on various occasions, but the last incursion is considered the largest in terms of the number of participants.

The incursion came hours after Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced the legalization of 69 settlement outposts in the occupied West Bank since the current government took office three years ago, describing it as a "record number".

According to data from the Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission, settlers carried out 621 attacks in the West Bank during November, targeting residents and their properties.

Alongside the Israeli war that Israel launched in Gaza in October 2023 and lasting for two years, the Israeli army and settlers intensified their attacks in the West Bank, resulting in the martyrdom of more than 1102 individuals, injuring about 11,000, in addition to the detention of more than 21,000.