US, EU condemns settler attack on Palestinian village in Hebron Hills

• Author: TOVAH LAZAROFF
• Published date: 02 October 2021
• Publication title: Jerusalem Post, The: Web Edition Articles (Israel)

"The US government strongly condemns the acts of settler violence that took place against Palestinians in villages near Hebron in the West Bank on September 28," a US Embassy spokesperson said on Friday.

Foreign Minister Yair Lapid issued a harsh statement about the incident: "This violent incident is horrific and it is terror," reads his tweet. "This isn't the Israeli way and it isn't the Jewish way. This is a violent and dangerous fringe and we have a responsibility to bring them to justice."

The embassy spokesperson acknowledged Lapid's statement.

"We appreciate the foreign minister and other officials' strong and unequivocal condemnations of this violence," the spokesperson said.

The left-wing NGO Peace Now called the attack a "pogrom."

B'Tselem account of the Israeli settler attack on a Palestinian village in the South Hebron Hills in the West Bank, September 28, 2021. (Credit: B'Tselem)

It also disputed Lapid's statement that the attackers were a "fringe" group, alleging that the "hilltop thugs" have the backing of Israeli security forces.

According to the left-wing group B'Tselem, the attackers "invaded Palestinian homes, smashed windows, and caused massive damage to equipment, including many vehicles."

Border policemen and IDF soldiers who responded to the incident used tear gas to quell the violence.

After the attack, three-year-old Muhammad Baker Mahmoud Hamamdeh was hospitalized at Soroka Medical Center with a head injury and is expected to be released. Meretz MK Mossi Raz visited him on Thursday.

The EU Representative Office to the Palestinian Authority tweeted that it was "appalled" by the attack in which "settlers reportedly destroyed Palestinian property and injured 12 Palestinians."

"Settler attacks on Palestinians must stop," it stated. "Israel as the occupying power must ensure public order and the well-being of the occupied...