Two Palestinian families have remained trapped in their homes in the occupied West Bank village of Qusra since Sunday, with their water and electricity supplies cut off and food running low.
The Abu Ridi and Hassan families said they were increasingly isolated and fearful as Israeli settlers remained at an outpost near their properties, prompting Palestinian residents and rights groups to call for urgent intervention.
The families’ ordeal began after settlers reportedly tore down a wall outside the Abu Ridi family’s home on Sunday evening and used the stones to block the road, preventing seven people, including two young girls, from leaving their homes.
Palestinian security camera footage showed settlers dismantling the wall and blocking access to the property.
Qusay Abu Ridi said the situation had become critical because the families were completely isolated.
“We are living in our own home, on our own land, and we are asking for nothing more than the right to live safely and with dignity.”
Aysha Hassan, another resident, said settlers had attempted to force their way into her family’s home and subjected them to verbal abuse.
“They tried to break the gate to the house and started throwing stones at us, cursing and insulting us.”
She added that the family was living in extreme fear.
“My family was dying of fear, extremely terrified.”
The families’ supplies began running low after access to the homes was blocked, while electricity and water supplies were reportedly cut off.
On Tuesday night, a Palestinian ambulance was eventually allowed to reach the families, delivering food and taking one child away for medical treatment.
The incident has drawn condemnation from Israeli rights group Yesh Din, which called on the Israeli military to protect the residents, remove the settlers from the outpost and hold those responsible accountable.
The group’s appeal came after Israeli soldiers were reportedly slow to intervene, while footage showed some soldiers at the scene praying alongside settlers when they first arrived after the Palestinian homeowners raised the alarm.
Israeli journalists from Haaretz also said they were prevented from reaching the properties on Monday after settlers blocked their vehicle for about two hours. The journalists said soldiers told them the area was a closed military zone but did not enforce the restriction against the settlers.
The Israeli military later condemned the establishment of the new outpost and the seizure of Palestinian homes.
“Illegal, reprehensible, and unacceptable activity,” the Israel Defense Forces said, referring to the reported entry into and seizure of Palestinian homes.
On Wednesday, Israeli security forces reportedly withdrew from the outpost after clashes with a large group of settlers. About a dozen settlers were said to remain at the site.
The IDF said border police had evacuated the tent used by the settlers and were working to remove civilians from the area.
“Border Police forces evacuated the tent and are working to evacuate the civilians who were staying there. The incident is still ongoing,” it said.
The military also said disciplinary action would be taken against security personnel who had been documented at the site several days earlier.
The head of the Israeli military’s Central Command, Major General Avi Bluth, and other senior officers visited the area on Wednesday and reportedly expressed concern over the situation.
Footage shared after their arrival showed confrontations between Israeli soldiers, border police and settlers, with security forces using tear gas and stun grenades.
The latest confrontation has renewed concerns over escalating settler violence in the Nablus area.
Qusra Mayor Abdel Azim Wadi said the village had experienced what he described as a sustained pattern of attacks. Last month, a newly completed mosque was set on fire, while Hebrew graffiti was reportedly sprayed nearby.
The latest incident also follows an earlier confrontation in the Palestinian village of Tal, where violence involving settlers and Palestinians resulted in six deaths, including four Palestinians and two Israeli soldiers.
In July, settlers reportedly surrounded a Palestinian home in nearby Jalud for more than two weeks. The owners later fled, while settlers took over the property.
The United Nations has warned that settler violence across the occupied West Bank has reached unprecedented levels.
“Settler violence has reached unprecedented levels,” Ramiz Alakbarov, the UN’s Deputy Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, told the Security Council on Tuesday.
Alakbarov said the Nablus Governorate had been particularly affected by the recent violence.
According to UN figures cited at the meeting, 76 Palestinians, including 18 children, have been killed in the West Bank this year by Israeli forces or settlers. Three Israelis, including one civilian, have also been killed in confrontations with Palestinians and an alleged ramming attack.
The UN said 127 Palestinian communities had experienced full or partial displacement since January 2023, including 47 that had been completely displaced, affecting more than 6,390 Palestinians.
It also recorded about 3,800 Palestinian displacements in 2026, nearly half involving children, because of settler violence, demolitions and evictions.
Israel’s ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, rejected the argument that Israeli settlements were an obstacle to peace, saying Israel had historical, biblical and legal claims to the territory. “The Security Council must understand a simple truth: we are not going anywhere,” Danon said.
Erizia Rubyjeana
Follow us on:
