Two Palestinians hurt by settler gunfire, including nurse said to be paralyzed for life

Teen said to be wounded in a separate attack; IDF reportedly detains 3 PA municipal workers after settlers assault crew trying to fix power and water lines at besieged Qusra homes

By ToI Staff, Noam Lehmann and Emanuel Fabian 15 August 2026, 11:38 pmUpdated: 16 August 2026, 7:40 am
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Israeli activists and Palestinian residents stand on the roof of a house besieged by Israeli settlers in the village of Qusra, south of Nablus, West Bank, on August 14, 2026. (FLASH90)
Israeli activists and Palestinian residents stand on the roof of a house besieged by Israeli settlers in the village of Qusra, south of Nablus, West Bank, on August 14, 2026. (FLASH90)

A Palestinian nurse has been permanently paralyzed after settler gunfire in the southern West Bank on Friday evening severed his spinal cord, according to the Palestinian Nursing and Midwifery Association.

Meanwhile, settlers continued to besiege two family homes in the village of Qusra.

The shooting of 26-year-old Muhammad al-Mutawwar near his home in the Hebron-area town of Sa’ir was “not a passing or individual incident, but the continuation of ongoing attacks on our Palestinian people, and on healthcare workers in particular,” the national nursing organization said.

Mutawwar, a nurse at the governmental hospital in the southern West Bank’s Dura, was shot in the back when settlers opened fire on Sa’ir’s al-Uddeissa area, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent.

Another young woman was also hit in the back and in the head, the Red Crescent said. Both of the wounded were taken to a hospital in Hebron.

Palestinian media reported that the two were shot as some 30 settlers attacked al-Uddeissa from a nearby outpost established about 10 days ago.

In footage published by Palestinian outlets from around dusk on Friday, three gunshots could be heard that were apparently fired at homes in al-Uddeissa from a hilltop opposite them.

In separate incidents on Saturday, the Palestinian Authority’s official news outlet WAFA reported that five Palestinians, mostly women and children, were injured in a settler attack on Umm al-Khair in the South Hebron Hills area of the West Bank.

They suffered various levels of bruising, according to the report, which cited a local Palestinian activist saying the victims were two women, two young men, and a child.

Footage from the village also showed a group of settlers harassing a Palestinian woman, and kicking her while she sat on the ground. It was unclear if the woman seen in the video was among those reported as injured.

At Ein Shibli, east of Tubas in the northern West Bank, the Red Crescent said it treated a 16-year-old boy after settlers beat him near a roadblock set up by Israeli security forces.

The Red Crescent said Israeli forces initially prevented its ambulance from arriving. Sources in the organization were cited by WAFA as saying the ambulance was delayed for over an hour.

The Israel Defense Forces did not respond to a request for comment on either incident.

Additionally, settler children were filmed raiding the Palestinian village of Turmus Ayya and harassing residents.

There were no reports of arrests.

In Qusra, settlers attack PA crew; IDF said to arrest workers

Also Saturday, settlers attacked a Palestinian Authority municipal crew as the workers tried to repair power and water lines that the extremists had damaged, which reportedly prompted Israeli forces to arrest three of the workers.

The incident took place on the outskirts of Qusra, where settlers have surrounded two homes in an apparent effort to compel their residents – including young children – to flee.

The siege has gone on since last Sunday, despite Israeli authorities bolstering forces in the village and dismantling an outpost the settlers established in the area.

On Saturday morning, a group of more than a dozen settlers arrived at the entrance to one of the Palestinian homes.

According to the military, troops were dispatched to the scene and the settlers then left the village on their own accord. There were no arrests.

In the afternoon, Palestinian Authority maintenance teams that had coordinated with the IDF arrived at two sites in the area where settlers damaged water and power lines.

In actions captured on video, around a dozen settlers rushed the crew’s bulldozer, leading its operators to retreat.

Residents told the Haaretz daily that when IDF troops arrived shortly thereafter, they restricted the Palestinian workers’ movement, making the repairs impossible.

According to WAFA, troops detained three of the municipal workers. The IDF did not respond to a request for comment on the incident.

Nurit Yohanan contributed to this report.

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