Israeli settlers and occupation forces escalated their attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank on Tuesday, with four Palestinians killed in Ramallah, Hebron, and Jenin.
The largest attack was on a school in the town of Al-Mughayyir, north of Ramallah, where settlers killed a child and a young man when they opened fire on a boys' school on the outskirts of the town, and three others were injured.
The Ministry of Health announced the death of the child Aws Hamdi Al-Naasan (14 years old), and the young man Jihad Marzouq Abu Naim (32 years old), in addition to three injuries from live bullets, during the settlers’ attack on Al-Mughair Boys School.
It should be noted that the father of the martyred child, Na’san, was killed by settlers in 2019 while transporting wounded people who had fallen in a similar attack, while the martyr Jihad Marzouq Abu Na’im is the son of the deputy head of the village council in Al-Mughayyir.
Eyewitnesses told Al-Quds Al-Arabi that a group of young men from the village went to the school as soon as they heard that it had been attacked by settlers, and they were able to reach it in an effort to evacuate the students and teaching staff, after the school appealed to the residents to come and help.
Qusay Naasan said that a small group of settlers fired shots at the windows of classrooms and balconies, which were full of children who were still unable to leave, causing them to panic.
He stated that the attack was directly targeting those inside the school, as three injuries were recorded, at least one of whom was hit by a bullet that penetrated his head, while work continued to evacuate the school by crawling.
Na’san continued: “As soon as the ambulances arrived and began transporting the injured, the Israeli army intervened, supporting the settlers and attacking the area.”
Activists documented cases of panic and fear among the students, while the sounds of gunfire filled the place.
The occupation soldiers fired a barrage of toxic tear gas canisters at the residents who rushed to the scene to protect their children.
Naasan added that the settlers were close to the school and were supervising it.
Pages affiliated with the town on social media published documentation showing the moment settler Shmuel Awandi opened fire on Jihad Abu Naim.
Afendi is a well-known figure in the Hebrew media and among the town's residents, as he holds the position of director of the "Homesh" religious school. He is known to official authorities and has a criminal record, and he is constantly present with the settlers' sponsors.
Media activist Aboud Abu Alia said that a group of settlers stormed the village of Al-Mughair coming from the direction of the settlement outpost established in the “Al-Khalail” area, whose residents had been displaced from it months earlier.
It is worth noting that the Al-Baydar human rights organization reported earlier today that settlers dressed in clothing similar to the Israeli army uniform tried to expel farmers from their lands south of Al-Mughayyir village, northeast of Ramallah.
The village of Al-Mughayyir, in particular, is experiencing escalating attacks by settlers under the protection of the Israeli army. This latest attack comes two days after settlers assaulted a farmer in the village, stealing approximately 150 sheep and attempting to seize dozens more.
In Hebron, a large crowd attended the funeral of 16-year-old Mohammed Majdi al-Ja’bari, hours after he was run over by a settler while on his way to school.
Local sources said that around six o'clock in the morning, while the child was riding his bicycle on his way to his school, he was run over by a settler who was driving a vehicle belonging to the security detail of one of the ministers of the occupation government, who reside in a settlement in the Hebron area, on the bypass road 60 leading to the settlement of “Kiryat Arba”, at the Beit Einun junction near Hebron, which led to his immediate death.
Hebrew media reported that the security unit was coming to transport Minister Orit Strock, who serves as Minister of Settlements.
Struck is a leader of the Jewish settlements in Hebron and founded the “Human Rights in Judea and Samaria” organization, an Israeli non-governmental organization concerned with promoting settlement in the West Bank.
In Jenin, Mrs. Raja Awais (45 years old) from Jenin camp died from injuries she sustained about two and a half years ago.
Local sources said that Awais died in Ibn Sina Hospital, as a result of injuries sustained from shrapnel in the brain. She had been injured in 2023 during an Israeli occupation forces raid on Jenin camp, after occupation soldiers blew up the door of her house during the raid, which led to her being injured by shrapnel in the head, damage to brain cells, and her entering a coma since then.
In a related context, settler bulldozers demolished the Al-Malih school in the northern Jordan Valley, along with the surrounding homes, days after settler attacks forced dozens of Palestinian families who lived in the area to leave.
Azmi Balawneh, the director of education in Tubas, said that about 70 male and female students were receiving their basic education from the first to the fourth grade in the targeted school.
He added that due to settler attacks that caused families to leave the area, the number decreased to 30 students, then to 16 students, before it was completely emptied after all the families were displaced from it.
