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.
Settlers, at least one of them armed with clubs, inside the village during the incident. From video documentation, courtesy of local residents
On Friday, 10 April 2026, in the early afternoon, two settlers arrived with a flock of sheep at land belonging to the village of Yabrud, in an area known as al-‘Aqbah, and grazed their flock about 70 meters from homes on the eastern outskirts of the village.
More settlers arrived gradually, and at around 6:30 P.M., about eight settlers entered the village in two vehicles and stopped in its western part, near the home of Isma‘il a-Za’arir, 63.
At the same time, a military vehicle entered the village from the direction of Silwad, and about 12 settlers arrived in cars from the opposite direction. The military vehicle stopped near the home of Muhammad Hajir, 44, in the eastern part of the village, and the settlers parked their cars several dozen meters from his house.
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The settlers leaving the village with the stolen horse. Photo courtesy of local residents
Hajir, who keeps a horse in a stable under his home, feared the settlers would steal it, so he moved it away and tied it in an open area west of the house. The settlers, however, noticed, and four of them headed there while the others waited near the vehicles. The settlers untied the horse and ran with it toward the vehicles. Hajir, who saw them, ran toward them, filmed them and shouted that the horse was his. One of the settlers assaulted Hajir, hitting him with a club until he fell. Meanwhile, several village residents arrived and advanced toward the settlers, who left the area in their vehicles, with one riding the horse.
At the same time, on the western side of the village, the settlers got out of their vehicles near a-Za’arir’s home, and two of them approached him and claimed they were looking for sheep that had been stolen from them. A-Za’arir told them that if sheep had been stolen from them, they should call the police. They replied that they were the police. While they tried to distract him, the other six settlers chased his sons, who were grazing about 30 head of sheep near the house. The settlers managed to steal the sheep and began leading them toward the village exit and the nearby Meguri family outpost.
Villagers chased the settlers who had stolen a-Za’arir’s flock, and mutual stone-throwing broke out between them. Then one of the settlers fired several shots at the residents with his rifle but hit no one. Other settlers pepper-sprayed the residents. Immediately afterward, the military jeep that had earlier stopped at the entrance to Hajir’s home arrived at the scene, and the soldiers ordered the Palestinian residents away from the area and prevented them from chasing the settlers, who left with the stolen sheep.
Hajir, who was beaten by the settlers, was evacuated to the medical center in Silwad, where he received treatment and returned home that same evening.
B’Tselem field researcher Mohammad Romaneh collected testimonies from Isma‘il a-Za’arir and Muhammad Hajir:
Isma‘il a-Za’arir, 63, a father of eight, related:
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A settler leading the stolen flock out of the village. Photo courtesy of local residents
On Friday, 10 April 2026, at around 6:30 P.M., while I was at home, I heard a loud, unusual noise. Just then, one of my grandchildren came and told me there were settlers in front of the house. I went out with my son, 33, to see what was happening and saw two vehicles with yellow [Israeli] license plates, one black and long. I didn’t manage to see what make it was. The other was a white Toyota. The two vehicles, which were full of settlers, approached our home.
When they were in front of the house, about seven or eight settlers got out. Two, whose faces were uncovered, came up to my son and me. One of them was tall and bearded and carried a long rifle on his back. The other settlers were masked, and they went to agricultural land west of our home, where my sons were grazing our flock.
The two settlers who came up to us spoke Hebrew, which I understand and speak well. The armed settler with the long beard told my son they were looking for their sheep that had been stolen nearby. I replied that they should bring the police to search the area, and he said there was no need for the army or the police because “we [the settlers] are the army and the police”. At the same time, about five or six settlers went down to the area where my sons were grazing the flock and began chasing them. My sons tried to get away from them and lead the flock westward to avoid being attacked.
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Settlers, one of them armed, at the entrance to a-Za’arir’s home. Photo courtesy of a-Za’arir
The two settlers kept talking to distract us from what was happening to my sons, and then we saw that the settlers who had chased the flock had managed to steal part of it and were leading it toward the road leading to Ramallah, known as Yabrud hill [Route 446]. At that point, the other settlers drove away toward a road that branches off from that hill road and leads to the outpost.
I saw my sons running after the settlers and joined them. The settlers’ vehicles that had previously stopped in front of the house also arrived, and stone-throwing broke out between us and the settlers. The settlers were armed with pepper spray and sprayed it at us to prevent us from getting close to the flock. One of them threw a stone at me and hit my right leg, and another beat me with a wooden stick on my back and right leg. When the stone-throwing intensified, the bearded, armed settler fired several direct shots at us but didn’t hit anyone.
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A settler armed with a club in village fields during the incident. Photo courtesy of local residents
It was only after the settlers were already backing away that military and police forces came. We couldn’t follow the settlers because of the pepper spray they sprayed at us. My whole face was burning from it, and one of my sons, who went closer to the flock and the settlers than the others, was particularly affected by it. The military and police didn’t even try to stop the settlers or retrieve the stolen flock, but pushed us away from the area and ordered us to go home.
The settlers stole about thirty head of sheep from us, which we bought about three years ago. About 25 of the stolen ewes were in late pregnancy, and each of them was expected to give birth to two to three lambs. Each stolen ewe is worth about 3,000 ILS (~ 1,000 USD). This is the first time settlers have come to this area, which is called al-‘Aqbah. Until now, it was considered one of the safest areas in the village. What happened that Friday showed us that nowhere in the village is safe anymore. Later, we found out that at the same time our flock was stolen, the settlers attacked a house in the eastern part of the village and stole a horse from there.
Muhammad Hajir, 44, a father of four, related:
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A settler stealing Muhammad Hajir’s horse. Still from video, courtesy of Hajir
On Friday, 10 April 2026, after the afternoon prayer, I saw two settlers grazing a flock about 70 meters east of my home. Shortly after, reports began circulating on village social media groups that many settlers had arrived from different directions, including from the outpost to the north and from Route 60. The settlers moved in groups, some of them inside the village too, and at the same time, military forces arrived and closed off the road leading to my neighborhood. It was reported that the settlers claimed they were looking for sheep they lost.
Because of that, I immediately moved my last remaining horse, a white, purebred Arabian horse named Mu‘taz Basha, 10 years old, with pedigree papers, about 100 meters west of the house and tied him in agricultural land to hide him. I bought this horse for about 20,000 ILS (~ 6,670 USD) and planned to use him in horse races.
I went into the house and watched the settlers’ movements from the windows, fearing they would come closer. At around 6:30 P.M., I saw four settlers coming toward my house carrying wooden clubs. They looked young, under 20, and wore hoodies, but their faces were visible. They went up a dirt path that leads to where I tied the horse. They must have noticed me when I moved him. Three vehicles and another seven or eight settlers were waiting for them at a lower point.
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A settler assaulting Muhammad Hajir with a club. Filmed by Hajir during the assault
I saw them run to the horse, untie the rope and run away with him. I mustered the courage, went out after them and shouted, “That’s my horse!” and then one of them hit me with a stick. I tried to defend myself, and the blow landed on my arm and hurt me very badly. Then the settler kept hitting me on the back and legs until I fell. I already have a prior injury to my legs from falling off the roof of my house about three years ago. After that, the settler left me and joined the others who were leading the horse to the vehicles.
I had no way to keep running after them, and I was alone because the military blocked the entrance to the neighborhood and prevented residents from coming to help me. The settlers went north toward the outpost with the horse. Afterward, I went home injured. Later, a video showing the horse theft was circulated, and I also filmed a segment showing the moment they reached him and untied him.
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A view of the outpost from village homes. Photo: Mohammad Romaneh, B’Tselem
After that, I went to the medical center in Silwad, where I was examined and had X-rays done. They found that I had various contusions and immobilized my arm. I filed a complaint with the Palestinian police in the town of a-Taybah, after coordination with the liaison office, even though in the past I filed complaints that led nowhere.
This incident left me with deep fear, to the point that I’m afraid to go to work in Ramallah and send my son in my place. I’m also afraid to send my children to the nearby store, less than 100 meters away, and when they go there, I call again and again to make sure they’re safe, out of fear that settlers will assault them. The settlers aren’t satisfied with controlling land anymore, but freely enter the village streets.
