In recent years — and especially since 7 October 2023 — there has been a sharp increase in both the number and severity of settler attacks against Palestinians. The incidents reported on this blog do not reflect all incidents of settler violence in the West Bank, but only those that B’Tselem was able to document and investigate.
Khirbet Khallet a-Dabe’, Masafer Yatta, South Hebron Hills: Israeli settlers pepper-sprayed a Palestinian shepherd in the face and hit him on the head with a stick
Na’im Hamamdeh receiving treatment after his attack. Photo: Basel al-Adrah, B’Tselem
On Monday, 29 April 2024, Na’im Hamamdeh (65) went out to graze his sheep on land he leases northeast of Khallet a-Dabe’. At 7:40 A.M., he noticed two masked settlers carrying sticks. They noticed him too and attacked him. One of the settlers pepper-sprayed him in the face, and the other hit him on the head with the stick. Both then left.
After about ten minutes, another shepherd who was in the area arrived, helped Hamamdeh walk to the entrance to Khallet a-Dabe’ and called an ambulance, which arrived after about 40 minutes. Meanwhile, a police officer who Israeli activists had called also arrived, and took Hamamdeh’s statement and photo. Hamamdeh was then taken by ambulance to the hospital in the town of Yatta.
His head wound was stitched, and he was discharged that evening with orders to return for follow-up.
Na’im Hamamdeh, 65, spoke about the incident in a testimony he gave B’Tselem field researcher Basel al-Adrah on 30 April 2024:
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Na’im Hamamdeh at his home after the attack. Photo: Basel al-Adrah, B’Tselem
On Monday, 29 April 2024, at 7:00 A.M., I went out as usual, with my flock of sheep of 50 head. I was heading to some land I leased near Khallet a-Dabe’, where I sowed winter crops to feed my sheep. Another shepherd from the Hamamdeh family was following about 600 meters behind.
I arrived at 7:40 A.M., and saw two masked settlers, one carrying an iron bar and the other carrying a wooden stick, hiding behind some rocks near the water cistern in the plot. I was about 70 meters away from them. I pulled out my phone quickly, called the other shepherd and asked him to come quickly, but to be careful.
While I was talking to him, the two settlers came at me fast. One of them raised his stick to hit me, but the other stopped him and pushed him back. Then he pepper-sprayed me in the face and eyes. I felt like I was choking, and my eyes hurt. I couldn’t see. I sat down on the ground and couldn’t move at all, and then I got hit hard twice on the head with a stick, above the forehead on the left side. I fell face down. I felt dizzy, and I was bleeding heavily from my head.
The two settlers fled after they attacked me. I sat like that for almost ten minutes, until the other shepherd arrived, and then we backtracked 200 meters and sat down on the ground near Khallet a-Dabe’. The shepherd applied pressure to my wound with my hat and called an ambulance, which arrived after about 40 minutes. The paramedics bandaged my head and put me in the ambulance.
While I was waiting for the ambulance, a police jeep arrived, called by Israeli activists. The police officer asked me about the incident and took my picture and my information. It took ten minutes, and then the ambulance took me to Abu Hassan al-Qassem Hospital in Yatta, where they took X-rays, and it turned out my forehead was fractured. The doctors stitched up my wound, which was 10 centimeters long, and I was discharged in the evening. I have to go back for follow-up tests.
