Media: Israeli settlers set West Bank mosque on fire

Israeli settlers attacked several Palestinian villages in the occupied West Bank early on Friday (May 15), setting fire to a mosque near Ramallah.

The report said settlers also torched vehicles in the same village, while in another area near Nablus, attackers reportedly broke into homes and damaged property, triggering panic among residents, Caliber.Az reports, citing dpa.

The Israeli military had not immediately confirmed the incidents.

Settler violence in the West Bank has increased significantly since the Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023. Although a ceasefire was reached in October 2025, sporadic violence has continued in the territory.

Avi Bluth, the Israeli military commander responsible for the West Bank, has recently condemned settler attacks. However, the Israeli army continues to face criticism from Palestinian officials and human rights groups over allegations it is not doing enough to prevent such incidents, and in some cases is accused of tacitly enabling them.

The latest violence comes a day after tens of thousands of Israelis took part in the annual Flag March in Jerusalem, a highly controversial event marking Jerusalem Day. During the march through the Old City, including the Muslim Quarter, some participants were reported by local media to have chanted anti-Arab slogans, intimidated residents and damaged shopfronts.

Jerusalem Day commemorates Israel’s capture of East Jerusalem during the 1967 Six-Day War, when it also took control of the West Bank. Palestinians mark the following day as Nakba Day, which remembers the mass displacement and loss of villages during the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948.