Two Palestinian teenagers have been buried after being killed during an attack in an occupied West Bank village, according to local officials. Omar al-Nassan, 19, and Khalil Abu Alia, 16, died in al-Mughayyir on Wednesday as confrontations erupted after Palestinian residents tried to stop Israeli settlers taking sheep, the village council told the BBC. The Israeli military gave a different account. It said its forces entered the village to provide security for an Israeli civilian and police officers who were attempting to recover livestock. The military said troops opened fire on and struck what it described as “key instigators” during a “violent disturbance”. Palestinians, it said, had thrown stones at Israeli forces. The deaths come amid a sharp rise in settler violence across the West Bank. UN figures show more than three attacks a day have been recorded on average so far this year, while al-Mughayyir, near Ramallah, has repeatedly faced attacks by Israeli settlers. Messages circulating in WhatsApp groups used by settlers have indicated that some hope to force residents of al-Mughayyir to leave. The latest killings have therefore added to growing concern over violence and displacement in the territory. At least 81 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces or settlers in the West Bank since the start of the year, according to UN figures. At least 23 of those deaths occurred in the context of settler attacks. Three Israelis, including security personnel and civilians, have been killed by Palestinians in the West Bank over the same period, the UN says. Watch: BBC reports from Palestinian village under weekly attack by Israeli settlers The Israeli military has faced mounting criticism over allegations that its forces actively participate in settler attacks, stand by during violence or fail to prosecute those responsible. Israel has rejected the characterisation of its forces in such incidents. There was a notable development on Thursday when Israeli police announced the arrest of a 19-year-old settler suspected of taking part in an attack on the Palestinian village of Qusra on Saturday. It was the first such arrest in weeks of attacks on Qusra. Dozens of masked settlers had descended on Qusra, surrounding a house while Palestinians were trapped inside and throwing stones. Israeli soldiers deployed to the scene reportedly detained the Palestinians inside but not the settlers, allowing the settlers to leave. The Israeli military said troops had removed “rioters” and protected residents. The incident has nevertheless intensified scrutiny of how Israeli security forces respond to settler violence. The wider backdrop is Israel’s extensive settlement presence in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Israel has built about 160 settlements housing around 700,000 Jews since occupying the territories during the 1967 Middle East war. Around 3.3 million Palestinians live alongside them in the West Bank. Palestinians seek the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza for a future state, while the settlements are considered illegal under international law. Another major development unfolded on Wednesday in the Masafer Yatta area, where Israeli forces demolished the Palestinian village of Khirbet al-Tabban. Israeli human rights organisation B’Tselem said its 70 residents, including 28 children, received no warning before the demolition and were not allowed to remove their belongings. B’Tselem described the destruction as the most significant demolition in Masafer Yatta since May 2025. The village lies within an area where the Israeli military has imposed restrictions dating back decades. In the 1980s, the military declared about 3,000 hectares in the South Hebron Hills, including Masafer Yatta, a restricted firing zone for military training. Israel says Palestinian homes in the area were built illegally. Israel’s Supreme Court ruled in 2022 that homes inside the firing zone could be demolished and residents expelled. Palestinian residents had argued that such action violated international law and said their families had lived in the area since before the establishment of the State of Israel. 9 B’Tselem says Khirbet al-Tabban has become the 66th Palestinian community expelled by Israeli authorities since the Gaza war began in October 2023. The organisation alleges that the expulsions form part of a campaign of “ethnic cleansing” in the West Bank. With the funerals of two teenagers now held in al-Mughayyir, attention remains focused on the escalating violence, the conduct of Israeli forces and settlers, and the growing pressure on Palestinian communities across the West Bank. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cj6482r6yl4o
