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Israeli settlers acceptable occurrence to mosques successful 2 West Bank villages connected Wednesday (June 17, 2026), their mayors said, with AFP journalists astatine 1 tract seeing scorched walls and graffiti.
The incidental came during a play of accrued attacks against Palestinian communities by settlers successful the Israeli-occupied West Bank since the commencement of the Gaza warfare successful 2023.
Osama Abdullah, caput of the colony assembly successful Jiljiliya, northbound of Ramallah, told AFP that “settlers acceptable occurrence to the ablution room, caused harm to the village’s main mosque, and scrawled hostile slogans connected the outer walls”.
AFP journalists who visited 1 mosque connected Wednesday (June 17, 2026) saw that the ceiling, walls and floors were blackened by fume and flames.
Graffiti had besides been daubed connected the walls successful Hebrew. Some work “vengeance” and “Hi, from the Hilltop Youth.”
The Hilltop Youth are a radical of Israelis successful the West Bank who are regularly accused of unit towards Palestinians they question to evict from areas they privation to instrumentality over.
Israel’s subject confirmed the arson and graffiti connected the mosques but did not place the perpetrators.
“The forces searched the country for suspects and located 2 burnt mosques, arsenic good arsenic graffiti connected the walls. The suspects had fled anterior to the accomplishment of the forces,” it said successful a statement.
Mayor Abdullah said settlers arrived to pain down the mosque betwixt 2 a.m. and 3 a.m. but recovered its doorway was locked, truthful alternatively they acceptable occurrence to a country dedicated to ablutions connected a little floor.
He said Palestinian civilian defence crews, on with young men from the colony and neighbouring areas, extinguished the blaze.
In the neighbouring colony of Mazari an-Nubani, settlers came to torch different mosque overnight, the caput of the colony council, Saad Dagher, told AFP.
Mr. Dagher said settlers arrived to onslaught 1 of the village’s 3 mosques with Molotov cocktails astir 3 a.m., earlier moving distant portion residents enactment retired the fire.
The Palestinian Ministry of spiritual affairs condemned “dangerous aggressions” successful a connection that besides called connected the planetary assemblage to intervene.
