Israeli occupiers torch mosque, injure 4 Palestinians in West Bank attacks

Israeli army issues 22 eviction, demolition orders for Palestinian homes in north of occupied East Jerusalem

Israeli occupiers set fire to two houses and a mosque and injured four Palestinians in a series of attacks in the occupied West Bank on Sunday.

The Palestinian Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs said in a statement that Israeli occupiers set fire to a mosque in the town of Tuwana in Masafer Yatta in Hebron, causing extensive damage to the facility.

The ministry, citing local sources, said the occupiers stormed the village and used flammable materials to set the mosque ablaze before residents and civil defence teams rushed to extinguish the flames.

According to the ministry, clashes broke out during the firefighting efforts with Israeli army forces, who were providing protection for the occupiers.

The ministry called the mosque attack "a fully-fledged act of terrorism," saying it was part of an Israeli policy aimed at displacing Palestinians from Masafer Yatta.

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Tuwana municipal chief Muhammad Raba’I told the official news agency Wafa that Israeli occupiers from the Havat Ma'on outpost raided the village and set fire to the mosque and two homes in the area.

In Nablus, four Palestinians were injured in an attack by Israeli occupiers in the town of Beita, according to local sources.

In the same governorate, the Israeli army closed the western entrance to the village of Burqa with earth mounds, raiding several homes and holding Palestinian residents for field interrogations.

In Jenin, the Israeli army arrested two young men after raiding their homes in the town of Qabatiya. Three more Palestinians were detained in the village of al-Mughayyir, east of Ramallah. Another Palestinian was taken into custody in Bethlehem.

Meanwhile, occupiers released their sheep onto Palestinian-owned land east of the village of Rammun in Ramallah, according to local sources and eyewitnesses.

The Israeli army and occupiers have intensified their attacks in the occupied West Bank since the start of the Gaza war in October 2023, killing at least 1,181 Palestinians, injuring 13,000, and arresting nearly 24,000, according to official Palestinian figures.

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Israel orders Palestinian home demolitions, evictions

The Israeli army issued 22 eviction and demolition orders for Palestinian homes in the town of Kafr Aqab, north of occupied East Jerusalem, amid an escalating Israeli campaign targeting Palestinian presence in the West Bank.

In a statement, the Jerusalem Governorate said Israeli forces raided the town and distributed eviction orders for an unspecified number of homes ahead of their demolition.

The governorate said the notices gave the Palestinian homeowners one week to evacuate their buildings before they are demolished.

An earlier statement by the governorate said Israeli authorities had previously distributed notices to halt construction works for around 20 homes in the town.

Meanwhile, Israeli forces placed concrete blocks in the Khneideq area on the road connecting the towns of Beit Anan and Beit Liqya, northwest of East Jerusalem, in preparation for installing a military gate in the area, according to the Palestinian news agency Wafa.

Wafa said the Khneideq faces frequent raids and attacks by Israeli forces targeting farmers and obstructing their access to their lands, as part of ongoing Israeli restrictions in East Jerusalem.