The al-Qanub area, southeast of the town of Sa’ir in Hebron District, was until recently home to some 15 families. Over the past two years, about half the families left the community after settlers took over farmland and pastureland and harassed local shepherds repeatedly.
On 8 February 2022, at around 5:00 P.M., Muhammad (74) and Zuhour (67) Shalaldeh, parents of six, were sitting in their tent. Their son Subhi (33), his wife Wa’d (26) and their six children, between the ages of six months to 11, were with them. Some of the children were playing inside the tent with their grandfather, and others were playing in front of it. Another son, Walid Shalaldeh (35), was grazing the family’s flock nearby.
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Subhi Shalaldeh and his daughter near the car behind which his wife Wa’d hid during the attack. Photo by Manal al-Ja’bari, B’Tselem, 13 Feb. 2022
The family suddenly noticed about 10 settlers approaching them in cars and on an ATV. They had three dogs with them. The settlers stopped about 20 meters away from the family’s tent and began throwing stones at it. Some family members came out to protect their home, throwing stones at the settlers in an attempt to fend them off. Within several minutes, about 30 more settlers arrived, some of them armed with clubs and axes.
Some of the settlers attacked the father of the family, Muhammad Shalaldeh. He fell to the ground, bleeding from his head, nose and hand. Wa’d Shalaldeh gathered her children and fled into the neighbors’ house and then, with the neighbors, to a location further away. Zuhour Shalaldeh stayed by the tent and followed the events from a hiding spot behind a car. Some of the settlers chased Walid and Subhi while throwing stones at them, hitting Subhi in the hand. Muhammad’s nephew Ya’qub Shalaldeh, who lives nearby, came to help the family but ended up being attacked by the settlers, as well. He was hit in the abdomen by a stone and fell to the ground.
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A soldier extending first aid to Muhammad Shalaldeh after the attack. Photo courtesy of the family
A family member notified the Palestinian DCO what was going on, and two military jeeps arrived. A soldier gave Muhammad Shalaldeh first aid, and he was then take to al-Ahli Hospital in Hebron. He was kept in the hospital for four days, and underwent nose and face surgery. Ya’qub Shalaldeh went to ‘Aliya Hospital in Hebron the day after the attack, when his abdominal pain grew worse. He was kept overnight for tests and released the following afternoon .
On 13 February 2022, two members of the family filed a complaint at the Etzion police station. Experience shows, however, that the odds of anyone being held to account for the attack on the family are extremely low. Israel’s law enforcement system whitewashes investigations of settler violence against Palestinians as matter of policy, as these acts of violence help the state take over Palestinian land throughout the West Bank.
Residents of al-Qanub are constantly subjected to settler violence and harassment. One of the worst attacks took place on 21 December 2020, when settlers set dogs on Subhi and Walid Shalaldeh as the two were grazing their flock, beat Walid and drove the two brothers and their flock out of the grazing area. The settlers then followed the brothers home and ran over Subhi Shalaldeh with an ATV, causing him to black out.
In a testimony he gave B’Tselem field researcher Musa Abu Hashhash the day after the attack, Muhammad Shalaldeh described what happened:
When the settlers came, my wife, my son Subhi and some of our grandchildren went outside. My son Walid was already outside. I took a club with me.
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Muhammad Shalaldeh after his attack. Photo courtesy of the family
Within moments, I found myself surrounded by about 40 settlers. Some of them came up to me and attacked me. I tried to protect myself and hit one of them with the club, but then five or six settlers jumped me. They knocked me down and started hitting me with stones all over my body. I tried to shield myself with my hands. None of my sons or the relatives who had come to our aid could get near enough to help me. The attack lasted several minutes. I was bleeding from the head, mouth and nose, and I couldn’t move. I felt hazy. Then the settlers took off. Some soldiers came, as well as an Israeli ambulance that took me to Wadi Sa’ir, where I was transferred to a Palestinian ambulance that took me to hospital in Hebron.
I’m at the surgical ward in al-Ahli Hospital in Hebron now. I still have strong pain in various parts of my body. I got X-rays and a CT scan, and I’ve had surgery on my face and nose. I have fractures in two of my right-hand fingers and in my right temple, under the eye. I also have a wound on the top of my head and bruises in different parts of my body.
This isn’t the first time settlers have assaulted us. They harass and attack us all the time.
Zuhour Shalaldeh spoke about the incident in a testimony she gave B’Tselem field researcher Manal al-Ja’bari the day after:
There were about 40 settlers there. They came over and surrounded us while throwing stones at us. Some of them were holding sticks and axes, too.
My husband told me to get away from there, so they wouldn’t attack me. I took a few steps back and stood behind a car that was parked behind the tent. My sons and the neighbors’ sons ran far away, and I saw several settlers chasing them.
I also saw some settlers surrounding my husband. He tried to defend himself. I saw him hit one of the settlers with a stick. I was scared and really stressed, because I saw the settlers attack him and knock him over. They were savagely hitting him with stones all over his body. I froze and couldn’t get a word out. I cried quietly, trembling with fear. I thought the settlers were going to kill my husband and me.
The settlers beat my husband for several minutes, hitting him in the head and body. I saw his face covered in blood. Then the settlers let go of him and took off.
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The Shalaldeh family’s flock against the background of one of the settlement outposts in the area. Photo by Manal al-Ja’bari, B’Tselem, 13 Feb. 2022
In a testimony he gave B’Tselem field researcher Musa Abu Hashhash on 14 February 2022, Muhammad’s nephew Ya’qub Shalaldeh (45), a shepherd and father of six who lives near the family, said:
I live about a kilometer away from my uncle Muhammad’s tents. About two kilometers away from our homes, the settlement of Metzad was established. In recent years, settlers from there have taken over farmland and grazing lands, which made about seven families leave al-Qanub.
On 8 February 2022, at around 5:00 P.M., my cousin called me and said a large group of settlers was approaching their home. I drove there in my car right away. I arrived within minutes and saw settlers in front of my uncle Muhammad’s home. Six or seven of them were beating him up as he lay on the ground, next to an defunct old car parked about 20 meters from the tent.
I also saw settlers chasing his sons Subhi and Walid, who were running towards the valley. Some of the settlers were holding clubs and some had axes. I tried to get closer to help my uncle, but four settlers came towards me and attacked me with stones and clubs. I tried to shield myself with my hands, but a stone hit me in the stomach and I fell over. The settlers kept on beating me.
A short while later, two military vehicles arrived and soldiers got out. The settlers let go of me and fled, some by car and others on foot. I got up and went over to my uncle, who was lying on the ground bleeding from his head, face and nose. A female soldier gave him first aid and within a few minutes, an Israeli ambulance came and evacuated him.
My relatives checked my wounds and the bruise on my stomach. At first, I refused to go to hospital, but in the morning, when the pain got worse, I went to ‘Aliya Hospital in Hebron. They gave me X-rays and kept me for observation until the following evening.
Yesterday, I went with my cousins Muhammad and Fadel to the Etzion police station, and we filed a complaint about the assault. I still have pain in my stomach and hand .
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Wa’d and Subhi Shalaldeh’s children. Photo by Manal al-Ja’bari, B’Tselem, 13 Feb. 2022
In a testimony she gave B’Tselem field researcher Manal al-Ja’bari, Wa’d Shalaldeh recounted the moments of the attack:
We were sitting with the children and my husband’s parents, and some of the kids were playing in front of the tent. Our daughter Hanan (11) called out that settler cars had come all the way up to our home. We went outside right away and saw about 10 settlers, some of them masked and some holding clubs and axes. They had three dogs with them. They threw stones at us. Their numbers quickly rose, until there were 40 or 50 settlers there. In the meantime, our neighbors and relatives started coming over and trying to protect us.
I gathered the children and ran to the neighbors’ house. Our neighbor Ni’mah was there with her five children. One of them is a newborn baby. We decided to run away and get some distance from the area. We walked about two kilometers and stayed there until my husband called and said it was all over. We went back home and when we got there, I was shocked by the sight of my father-in-law. He was lying on the ground with his face covered in blood. My daughter Hanan was terrified, too. She hugged her grandfather and started screaming and crying.
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The Shalaldeh family’s sheep enclosure. Photo by Manal al-Ja’bari, B’Tselem, 13 Feb. 2022
