Palestinian families in West Bank hamlet said to flee due to settler attacks

Several families from the Palestinian West Bank hamlet of Deir Alla have abandoned the dwelling in the face of several settler attacks over the last few days, and the establishment of a settler outpost in the hamlet, the Palestinian news agency Wafa reports.

The head of Kisan Village Council, which is close to Deir Alla, is quoted by Wafa as saying that settlers vandalized homes in the dwelling yesterday, destroyed solar panels and the local water network and looted some belongings.

Head of the council Mousa Abiyyat states that following the attack, settlers came back later in the day and threatened the residents with severe consequences if they did not leave the hamlet, leading several families to flee.

According to Haaretz, 17 families have now abandoned Deir Alla, following the violence of the last few days and the establishment of the outpost on Wednesday.

Saturday’s incidents followed an arson attack against several homes in the hamlet overnight Friday.

IDF forces who arrived at the scene detained several suspects on suspicion of involvement in the incident and handed them over to the police, the IDF spokesperson’s unit says.

Officials say that the police then released them after questioning them in the field, although the police have denied that any suspects were detained or arrested at all.