Israeli security forces arrested over a dozen Palestinians Monday who sought to prevent a settler from grazing sheep on their land in the southern West Bank, the B’Tselem rights group says.
Siblings from a family in a-Rakeez whose parents were arrested by Israeli security forces on June 30, 2025, according to B’Tselem. (B’Tselem)
Members of the Palestinian hamlet of a-Rakeez, in an area known as Masafer Yatta, called Israeli Police upon spotting the Israeli settler on their agricultural land, B’Tselem says.
When Israeli troops and officers arrived at the scene, they arrested the Palestinians, while allowing the settler to continue grazing his sheep.
The detainees, including women, minors and the parents of two young children, are being held at a police station in the southern West Bank settlement of Kiryat Arba, B’Tselem says.
Spokespeople for the Israel Police and the IDF did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Masafar Yatta is located in what Israeli authorities say is an IDF firing zone, exposing it to evacuation orders. Residents say they have lived their for decades and face regular demolitions by Israeli authorities and harassment from nearby settlers from nearby illegal outposts, who they say are spared the selective enforcement of the orders.
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