From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, April 15, 2026
Video: Extremist settlers break into Palestinian homes, sheep pens, residents say in an effort to steal livestock
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleJeremy Sharon is The Times of Israel’s legal affairs and settlements reporter
Extremist settlers sought to steal sheep from Palestinian herders in the West Bank hamlet of Al-Mirkaz in the South Hebron Hills earlier today, with residents claiming that the extremists were accompanied by at least one soldier.
Footage taken by villagers shows the settlers entering their homes and their sheep pens, while a separate video shows others approaching a different pen accompanied by one IDF soldier in uniform, although without tactical equipment, and another individual who is in half-uniform.
The IDF Spokesperson’s Unit has been contacted for comment.
According to Mishirqi Quamar Assad, an attorney with the legal aid organization Haqel-In Defense of Human Rights, which represents Palestinians in the region, the extremists sought to steal the sheep and were trying to apply ear tags of their own on the Palestinian-owned sheep as part of a scheme to claim that they belonged to the settlers.
Palestinian herders in the West Bank, their legal representatives, and Israeli civil rights activists have frequently reported and documented efforts by settler extremists to intermingle their own herds with Palestinian herds in order to then steal the Palestinian livestock, as well as similar such tactics.
In recent years, settler extremists have stolen Palestinian livestock as a way to deprive vulnerable, rural Palestinian communities of their livelihood and force them out of their homes.
In January this year, settlers accompanied by IDF soldiers stole 150 head of livestock from the hamlet of Khirbet al-Halawa in an incident caught on security camera footage.
Al-Mirkaz lies just 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) west of Khirbet al-Halawa.
Extremist settlers broke into Palestinian homes and sheep pens in Al-Mirkaz in the South Hebron Hills today, apparently accompanied by [reservist/off duty?] IDF soldiers in what residents and their lawyer said was an attempt to steal their sheep… pic.twitter.com/yrRxNeYXAE
— Jeremy Sharon (@jeremysharon) April 15, 2026
The Times of Israel Community.