## A. The murder **On 11 May 2022**, Al Jazeera American-Palestinian reporter Shireen Abu Akleh and a group of five other journalists arrived at Balat Al Shuhada’ street in Jenin to report on a raid on the nearby refugee camp by the Israel Defence Forces (IDF). The journalists wore prominent ‘PRESS’ vests that identified them as such, from both the front and back, and followed standard protocols for self-identification as they slowly approached a convoy of five armoured Israeli military vehicles parked along an unnamed street intersecting Balat Al Shuhada’. The Israeli army vehicles were approximately 200 metres south of the journalists. **The journalists present during this incident were:** 1° **Shireen Abu Akleh** (fatally hit in her head) 2° **Shatha Hanaysha** (first eye witness under the fire standing near Shireen when Shireen was shot and killed) 3° **Ali Al-Samoudi** (injured in the shoulder) 4° **Mujahid al-Saadi** 5° **Muhannad Nairoukh** 6° **Majdi Bannoura** **At 6:31 AM**, an **Israeli army special forces marksman** (different from ‘snipers’, they are part of a standard fighting squad: their task is to target shots more accurately than regular troops using guns having a bio-pod and an optical scope such as Trijicon ACOG x4) fired the first burst of six bullets directly at the group of journalists from a sniper hole in the military vehicle at the front of the Israeli army convoy. One of the shots **hit journalist Ali Al-Samoudi in the shoulder**. **Eight seconds later**, as the journalists attempted to take cover, the Israeli army marksman fired a second burst consisting of a further seven distinct gunshots, once again targeting the journalists. One of those bullets **hit Shireen Abu Akleh in the head**, fatally wounding her. **Two minutes later**, an unarmed civilian, Sharif al-Azab, attempted to deliver first aid to Shireen, and he, too, **was fired at with three distinct gunshots**. See the **[Timeline of the incident reconstructed by Forensic Architecture](https://forensic-architecture.org/investigation/the-extrajudicial-killing-of-shireen-abu-akleh-extended-report/#anchor-6)** She was transported to [Ibn Sina Hospital in Jenin](https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-palestine-al-jazeera-journalist-shireen-abu-akleh-shot-dead-jenin), where she was pronounced dead, at the age of 51. The injured journalist, Ali Samoadi, of the Al-Quds newspaper, was shot in the back but survived. ## B. The aftermath of the murder ### On May 11, 2022 : The Israeli military and [Israel's US embassy tweeted a video of Palestinian gunmen in Jenin firing down an alley](https://x.com/naftalibennett/status/1524300920959508484), suggesting they were responsible. However Israeli NGO B'Tselem visited the scene where that footage was taken, and said it was impossible for Abu Akleh to have been hit from there. ### On May 13, 2022 : Abu Akleh’s body was brought from Jenin, where she was killed by Israeli forces on Wednesday, to Jerusalem via Nablus and Ramallah, in a procession where Palestinians paid their respects. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has said that he would take Abu Akleh’s case to the International Criminal Court in an effort to get justice for the veteran reporter, who joined Al Jazeera in 1997, and was an icon in Palestine and the wider Arab world. In a scene that violates all norms and International laws, the Israeli occupation forces stormed the French Hospital in Jerusalem and attacked the mourners of the late Shireen Abu Akleh at the start of the funeral procession. They severely beat the pallbearers of the late journalist. Israeli forces beat crowd of mourners carrying coffin of Shireen Abu Akleh ahead of funeral in the Old City of occupied East Jerusalem. Thousands of Palestinians have gathered for the funeral service, before Abu Akleh is taken to the Mount Zion Protestant Cemetery, where she will be buried alongside her late parents. Sources [1](https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/5/13/mourners-bid-farewell-to-journalist-shireen-abu-akleh-live-news) [](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/INTERACTIVE-Journalists-killed-by-Israeli-forces-1.png?w=770&resize=770%2C770&quality=80) ## C. Independant Forensic Architecture Investigation ### General conclusion of the investigation : 1) The journalists were clearly identifiable as press/non-combatants to the Israeli army marksman. 2) The Israeli army marksman deliberately and repeatedly targeted Shireen and her fellow journalists with the intention to kill. 3) The attack on Shireen and her journalist colleagues occurred during a period without risk to the Israeli army marksman’s life or that of other soldiers. There were no shots other than those of the Israeli marksman fired at the time and no armed individuals in the vicinity of the journalists. 4) Shireen was deliberately denied first aid after being shot by the Israeli army. News agencies, rights groups and the United Nations have all conducted investigations into her killing and concluded that Abu Akleh was killed – likely deliberately – by Israeli troops. ### Conclusions of [Audio and acoustic analysis](https://content.forensic-architecture.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/2022.11.02_Final-Audio-and-Acoustic-Analysis-SAA-Report.pdf) | Gunfire *before,during and after the killing of Shireen Abu Akleh by Researcher in charge: Dr. Lawrence Abu Hamdan:* The shooter fired a semi-automatic weapon from approximately 180 metres away from Shireen Abu Akleh. This shooter pulled the trigger on seven separate occasions within two seconds making the claim that at no point was there any intentional gunfire carried out by IDF soldiers in a manner intended to harm the journalist” highly improbable. All gunshots audible in the 2 minutes prior to the killing of Shireen Abu Akleh are fired from the same position. No other shots in this recording are firing towards the military position from the the vicinity of Shireen Abu Akleh and her colleagues. This report finds no evidence to support the claims that life-threatening, widespread and indiscriminate shots were fired toward IDF soldiers.” The journalist was not “present in the area during an exchange of fire. . [The online report with videos](https://forensic-architecture.org/investigation/shireen-abu-akleh-the-targeted-killing-of-a-journalist) [the PFD Complete report](https://forensic-architecture.org/investigation/the-extrajudicial-killing-of-shireen-abu-akleh-extended-report/) [](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FdImqLUXEAYqzil?format=jpg&name=4096x4096) ## D. International statements **On October 13, 2022 UN human rights experts** [have condemned the killing](https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/5/13/un-experts-condemn-shireen-abu-aklehs-killing-demand-probe) of Al Jazeera journalist, Shireen Abu Akleh, and called for a prompt, transparent, thorough and independent investigation into her death. *“The killing of Abu Akleh is another serious attack on media freedom and freedom of expression, amid the escalation of violence in the occupied West Bank.(...) We demand a prompt, independent, impartial, effective, thorough and transparent investigation into the killing of Shireen Abu Akleh, in full compliance with the Revised United Nations Manual on the Effective Prevention and Investigation of Extra-Legal, Arbitrary and Summary Executions (The Minnesota Protocol on the Investigation of Potentially Unlawful Death). We urge the Israeli and Palestinian authorities and other stakeholders to cooperate with such an investigation."* **Powerful statement by Shireen Abu Akleh’s family** saying they are “incredulous” after the State Department released its finding, calling it “insulting to Shireen’s memory.”  ## E. Further linked incidents againt press freedom and Shireen Memory Her funeral was [assaulted by Israely Security Police](https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/5/13/mourners-bid-farewell-to-journalist-shireen-abu-akleh-live-news)throughout the procession in Jerusalem, with the coffin bearers being violently beaten with batons and prevented from moving forward. The coffin nearly fell to the ground multiple times. All of these scenes were filmed and broadcast around the world. The White House denounced the violence as “deeply disturbing.” Her memorial, located at the site where she was killed, was desecrated by Israeli forces during a raid in Jenin in October 2023. A D9 Caterpillar bulldozer was used to clear the road and destroy the street mural commemorating her.  *Picture: Samar Hazboun for The New York Times* During the Israeli raid on the Al Jazeera office to shut it down in September 2024, the poster in memory of Shireen that adorned the façade was immediately removed and torn apart in full view of the cameras. Her colleagues, and particulary Shatha Hanaysha, were subjected to threats and attempts on their lives while covering stories. On September 19, 2024, Israeli forces [violently arrested](https://x.com/DropSiteNews/status/1839358600449290417) prominent Palestinian journalist Mujahed al-Saadi, breaking into his home in the middle of the night in Jenin, an illegally occupied part of the West Bank. Al-Saadi had been present when the IDF shot and killed Shireen Abu Akleh in 2022 and had recently reported for Drop Site during Israel’s brutal 10-day siege of Jenin. ### The U.S. protection of the Israel impunity: “U.S. Assessment of Israeli Shooting of Journalist Divided”: On June 20, 2022, The NYT published an investigation showed that there were no armed Palestinians near her when she was shot. It contradicted Israeli claims that, if a soldier had mistakenly killed her, it was because he had been shooting at a Palestinian gunman. This investigation also showed that 16 shots were fired from the location of the Israeli convoy, as opposed to Israeli claims that the soldier had fired five bullets in the journalists’ direction. However, on July 2022, a State Department statement claims that the damage to the bullet made it difficult to draw a definitive conclusion about the gun it was fired from. But shots fired from the position of the Israel Defense Forces were “likely responsible for the death,” U.S. officials “found no reason to believe that this was intentional but rather the result of tragic circumstances during an I.D.F.-led military operation,”. The Israeli government had cast doubt on that, saying that she was hit by either an Israeli soldier or a Palestinian gunman. Israeli officers have said that an Israeli soldier from Duvdevan, an elite unit, fired in Ms. Abu Akleh’s direction, but that it was impossible to determine who shot her without examining the bullet. The New York Times revealed on Monday morning, October 27, 2025, new details regarding the killing of journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, who was shot dead by Israeli forces in 2022. According to the report, a U.S. Army colonel stated that the official U.S. assessment of the killing of Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh in 2022 was “deliberately softened” to avoid a diplomatic dispute with Israel, as reported by the Israeli newspaper Israel Hayom. The report added that some U.S. officials involved in reviewing the circumstances of the incident reached the conclusion that the shooting of Abu Akleh was intentional. The U.S. government conducted a review into the shooting of a journalist by Israeli forces. The assessment concluded that gunfire from Israeli military positions was “likely responsible” for the journalist’s death. However, American officials also stated they “found no reason to believe” the shooting was deliberate or constituted a policy of targeting journalists. The division among U.S. analysts and the qualifier “likely responsible” highlight the difficulty in attributing full accountability or intent in the circumstances.

At midday, an Israeli drone airstrike targeted the Abu Mazid family house in the town of Zawayd, central Gaza, killing four men from the family. **Names of the martyrs:** 1. Abdullah Hussein Abu Mazid 2. Muad Fouad Abu Mazid 3. Ahmad Fouad Abu Mazid 4. Ali Fawzi Abu Mazid

Around 1:30 pm, an Israeli airstrike targeted the Suwairki family home on Moshtaha Street in Shujaiya neighborhood, east of Gaza City. Six people were killed, including three children and two women. **Names of the martyrs (identified):** 1. Mirfat Al-Suwairki 2. Farah Al-Suwairki (Mirfat's daughter) 3. Mutayam-billah Muhammad Al-Suwairki -child) 4. Hala Muhammad Al-Suwairki (child) 5. Sohad Al-Suwairki (Sources: [1](https://x.com/F24online/status/1874419788791107981) [2](https://x.com/refugeesps/status/1874445816703901870) [3](https://x.com/Qadeyah1/status/1874547060613304634)) **Photos** 

Wadi Sa’ir (also spelled Wadi al-Sa’ir or Sa’ir Valley) is located northeast of Hebron in the southern part of the occupied West Bank, Palestine. It’s a hilly and agricultural area known for its olive groves and vineyards. Wadi Sa'ir is close of the town of Sa’ir (or Saer) lies close to the valley, home to about 20,000 Palestinians. The area has often been targeted by Israeli settlers from nearby settlements such as Asfar (Metzad) and Pnei Kedem, who attack farmers and destroy olive trees — particularly during the olive harvest season. Residents of Sa’ir said that the ongoing assaults by settlers and occupation forces are part of an ongoing effort to forcibly displace Palestinians from their lands to make way for settlement expansion. They noted that similar attacks are often carried out by settlers from “Asfar” and “Kedumim,” including the theft of dozens of sheep. ### **Timeline of the main incidents:** **In October 2023,** the Israeli army closed the main historical road leading to Jorat al-Khail, which branches from Wadi Sa'ir. An army bulldozer was used to block the road, forcing residents to find alternative, difficult, and long routes to transport their needs and livestock supplies, significantly increasing transportation costs. **In April 2024**, settlers attacked his brother Ibrahim (60 years old) while he was herding the family's livestock. Five masked settlers attacked him, and Ibrahim fled to protect his life (he had previously been physically assaulted by settlers). The settlers chased the herd, and by evening, they gathered the herd back into the pen. Upon counting, they found that six goats had been stolen by the settlers. **On the evening of Sunday, July 14, 2024**, Israeli soldiers raided the village, gathered its residents, and informed them that they would set up checkpoints around the settlement. They planned to count the residents and prevent non-residents from entering, aiming to restrict communication with these residents and pressure them to leave. **On April 26, 2025**, settlers from Asfar settlement injured three Palestinian farmers in Wadi Sa’ir, in Hebron governorate, using stones and sticks, and damaged their vehicle. **On June 30, 2025**, around 12 pm, a group of settlers from colonial outpost located on Sa’ir town lands set fire in the farmers’ lands, causing severe damages. They attacked ‘’Jourat Al Khail‘’ community east town, they were forced displacement due to these attacks, as the Israeli soldiers pursuing them and deporting settlers from the community, then settlers came back and set fire in agricultural lands, to preventing them from attacking what remains in ‘’Jourat Al Kail’’. **On July 12, 2025**, Settlers set fire to Palestinian homes in Wadi Sa'ir. **On August 18, 2025,** settlers set fire to Sa’ir lands (vineyards, olive, almond) in Wadi Saʿir area. WAFA reports that dozens of them from “Asfar” and "Kodufim," stormed Wadi Sa’ir and burned 10 dunums belonging to the Shalaldeh and Tarwa families, and that dozens of sheep are being stolen. **On September 1, 2025**, in the evening, dozens of settlers from the “Asfar” settlement stormed Wadi Sa’ir and torched dozens of dunums planted with grapevines, almond trees, and olive trees. The lands belong to the Shallaldeh and Al-Tarwa families, among others. **On October 27, 2025** Wadi Sa’ir witnessed the establishment of seven new settlement outposts, turning the area into a "closed military zone" & preventing farmers from accessing their lands & harvesting olives under threat of force. **On November 17, 2025,** a number of citizens were injured, and a house and two vehicles were burned in an attack carried out by settlers, protected by occupation forces, on the town of Sa'ir northeast of Hebron. Citizen Issa Shalaldeh told the official agency that a group of settlers attacked his family’s homes in the "Wadi Sa'ir" area, burning the house of his son Naseem and two family vehicles. The settlers assaulted the locals with batons and sharp tools, which resulted in injuries to several women, as well as causing significant damage to property. Israeli forces prevented ambulances and firefighting vehicles from reaching the "Wadi Sa'ir" area.

Issa Amro is a Palestinian human rights activist from Hebron, in the occupied West Bank.He is best known for promoting nonviolent resistance against the Israeli occupation and for documenting human rights abuses in Hebron. He continues to live in Hebron, where his home and neighborhood are frequently targeted by Israeli settlers and military restrictions. On October 2025, Parts of the area around his home have been declared a “closed military zone”, limiting his movement and activities. **Background and Work** Born in 1980 in Hebron’s Old City. He is the founder and coordinator of Youth Against Settlements (YAS), a grassroots group that organizes nonviolent protests, media tours, and human rights documentation in areas heavily restricted by Israeli forces and settlers. The group’s mission is to end segregation in Hebron, particularly on Shuhada Street, which Palestinians are largely banned from accessing. Amro frequently speaks to international delegations, journalists, and human rights organizations about the daily realities faced by Palestinians under occupation. **Arrests and Harassment** Amro has been arrested and tried multiple times by Israeli military courts for his activism — charges that human rights groups like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch describe as politically motivated. He has also faced detention and intimidation from the Palestinian Authority, which has been criticized for repressing dissent.Amnesty International and the United Nations have called for an end to his harassment by both Israeli and Palestinian authorities. **Recognition** Amro has received several international awards and nominations for his commitment to peaceful activism. He has been praised by figures such as Bernie Sanders and Noam Chomsky, and has spoken at the United Nations and universities worldwide about nonviolent resistance. On September 2025, Issa Amro was included in the Time 100 Next list in the category "Leaders". The Gala toke place on October 31, in New York. *"Thirty miles east of the Gaza Strip stands another cauldron: Hebron, the largest city in the West Bank, is inhabited by 200,000 Palestinians, 800 Jewish settlers, some 1,000 Israeli soldiers, and Issa Amro, who exists as a category of his own. A student of Mohandas Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr., Amro is far from the only Palestinian to embrace nonviolence. Polls show millions share his preference for a peaceful resolution to decades of conflict over Israel’s presence in the West Bank and Gaza. But few have had their conviction tested so sorely. As the founder of Youth Against Settlements, Amro spreads a gospel of resilience, passive resistance, and stubborn presence in one’s home. His philosophy stands in opposition to aggression from both settlers and soldiers, one of whom, right on camera, threw him to the ground and started kicking. Labeled a “provocateur” by the Israeli military, the activist has been honored by organizations from the European Union to the U.N. “See us as human beings,” Amro said, receiving the Right Livelihood Award in Berlin in June. “And see us as a nation.”* 

In Wadi Tiran (Masafer Yatta, south of Hebron), Palestinian shepherd families have faced escalating settler harassment since October 2023. Settlers from the nearby Havat Yehuda outpost graze sheep on Palestinian fields, reducing grazing for local animals, and sometimes use military personnel to enforce claims. Families report threats, home intrusions, property damage, destruction of the only village road, and drones monitoring daily life. Children have been endangered by settler flocks and dogs. These actions have created fear and insecurity, with some neighboring families already displaced. **On November 12, 2023:** Israeli settlers attacked the Palestinian herding community of Wadi Tiran, in the southern West Bank. This is after 2 threatening visits the day before. Israeli Police did nothing though residents reported specific individuals. They caused damages on resident vehicles. **On March 1 2024:** In the morning, a settler came from the direction of “Meitarim Farm” outpost to the wheat fields of Wadi Tiran village. He drove away the village children and the flocks and ran over one boy's foot before fleeing the scene. Te outpost, "Meitarim Farm" is home to Yinon Levi and Eilai Federman, who are under US sanctions after Levi *"led a group of settlers that engages in intimidation."* According to the UK, Feldman *"was involved in a large number of incidents against Palestinian shepherds in the South Hebron Hills."* Together with other youths, and with the full support and assistance of the army, Levy and Friedman have expelled five Palestinian villages in the area. Wadi Tiran is the only village around whose residents have not yet fled. In the afternoon, a few hours after the sheep herd was expelled in Wadi Tiran, settlers returned to the village. This time they came on horseback, and drove out the herd again. All this happens with the knowledge and encouragement of the IDF, which monitors and follows and intervenes only when the settlers' thugs are in danger. The police did nothing when the settlers expelled the five villages. The police did nothing when Yinon Levi blocked off Wadi Tiran from all sides with a bulldozer. The police did nothing when settlers came down and attacked the village, vandalizing vehicles and threatening to murder residents. **On March 11, 2024:** A convoy of bulldozers arrived in the village of Wadi Tiran to demolish a residential room in the house of an old man who was born in the village long before the occupation of the West Bank. **On June 8, 2024:** "Ynon Levi, armed with a pistol, and Eili Federman, two settlers from the Meitarim Farm outpost who were responsible for the expulsion of several villages at the beginning of the war, arrived today to harass the residents of Wadi Tiran while they were harvesting their hay on privately owned land near the village of Shuweika." **On September 27, 2024:** Just after having forcibly expelled hundreds of residents from Zanuta (Masafer Yatta), setters have started to harrass additional Palestinian communities in the area in order to appropriate their land. This settler attacked a family in Wadi Tiran and then blocked Rabbis for Human Rights activist from accessing the area. **On February 5, 2025:** Masked settlers near Al Dhahriya abducted a young shepherd from Wadi Tiran, blindfolded and tied him, and mocked him while accusing him of grazing on land they sought to seize. The land had long been farmed by his family, but a settler from the nearby Havat Yehuda outpost recently plowed it to claim control. After detaining him for about an hour, the settlers drove him around, mistreated him, and eventually abandoned him several kilometers from his home. **On Augustus 5, 2025** Settlers on an ATV stormed into the village lands, speeding and sounding loud sirens to torment the residents and their livestock. The abuse of the residents of Wadi Tiran—a small community on the outskirts of the town of Dhahiriya has been intensifying again recently, and the access road to the village was blocked months ago by settlers from the Meitarim Farm outpost. Since the nearby village of Zanuta was expelled, the residents of Wadi Tiran have experienced violence, property damage, and threats, in addition to frequent incidents of flocks being driven off their grazing lands and repeated acts of intimidation. **On September 12, 2025:** In the evening, settler women on an ATV (arboring the "Third Temple" flag) invaded the village of Wadi Tiran; one of them cut a barbed-wire fence in a Palestinian residential compound and entered it with her companions, waving a box cutter proudly."

Settlers from the Mishkeh Man outpost, including Yissakhar Man, are used to invade the Palestinian village of Tuba, some armed, entering private courtyards and watering their flocks at the villagers’ water source. These actions are part of a recurring pattern: provocations meant to elicit a reaction from residents, followed by settler violence, arrests, and full cooperation from Israeli police, army, and media. In recent months, Tuba has faced ongoing settler violence, including arson, physical assaults, arrests of victims, and daily expulsion of shepherds from grazing lands. ### **Chronology of the events** **July 21, 2024** After dark Yissakhar Man arrived in the village of Tuba and went on a rampage with his ATV, at one point dangerously and threateningly accelerating toward a 16-year-old boy. **August 9, 2024** The settler Yissakhar Man and another settler from the Mishkeh Man outpost invaded the lands of the village of Tuba with their flock, watering the sheep at the village’s water cistern. The settlers were accompanied closely by uniformed bodyguards: settler-soldiers. **On April 5, 2025** About ten settlers, among them Yissakhar Man — one of the owners of the outpost Mishkeh Man — invaded the village of Tuba today, some of them armed, and entered the courtyards of homes. The police made sure to show up the moment the settlers had already left the area.

**On June, 2024:** Israeli forces demolished a large residential home in Jawaya. During the demolition, they also found an opportunity to beat some of the residents **On July 5, 2024** Footage shows Israeli settlers attacking a group of foreign peace activists visiting the Palestinian village of Al-Jawaya south of Al Khalil in the occupied West Bank. **On July 21, 2024** In the morning, a bulldozer working for settlers flattened land belonging to the village of Jawawiya. The work is taking place right next to the vast area already allocated to Yissakhar Man — at the expense of Jawawiya’s grazing lands — where a vineyard was planted over two years ago. As far as we know, the work is illegal even under Israeli law, and certainly under international law. **On Augustus 5, 2024** Destruction of a water cistern today in the village of Jawaya. At the height of summer, Israeli demolition forces arrived to destroy a cistern used by the residents of Jawaya, who cannot connect to a regular running water supply because the occupying forces refuse to allow them to develop an organized water system. **On Augustus 8, 2024** IDF demolition vehicles destroy a water well in the Wadi Al-Jawaya **On March 15, 2025** - Israeli settlers with ATV quad chased Palestinian shepherds in Jawaya village. - According to Waffa, Israeli sttlers, under the protection of Israeli military forces, attacked shepherds in the Masafer Yatta region, south of Hebron, forcing them at gunpoint to leave their lands. - Osama Makhamreh, an anti-settlement activist, told WAFA that settlers assaulted the family of Ahmad Barghash al-Shawahin while they were herding their livestock in Wadi al-Jawaya. The settlers chased them and forced them, under threat of weapons, to abandon their land. - According to Osama Makhamreh, heavily armed settlers also stormed Khirbet al-Tuba, terrifying children and women.

### Rotem (Hebrew: רותם) is an Israeli settlement in the West Bank. Located in the northern Jordan River Valley along the Allon Road south-west of Shadmot Mehola, it falls under the jurisdiction of Bik'at HaYarden Regional Council.In 2022 it had a population of 275. The international community considers Israeli settlements to be illegal under international law. ### Tene Yarok Farm of Didi Amosi (father of Gilad Amosi) About a decade ago, Didi Amosi established the Tene Yarok farm near the settlement of Rotem in the Jordan Valley. In recent years, residents of Palestinian communities from the area have testified about the harassment and expulsion of their herds by settlers who came from the direction of the outpost. Didi Amosi, who was also the security officer of the Rotem settlement, was reprimanded a few years ago for attacking an activist from the Jordan Valley activists group who accompany Palestinian shepherds who are suffering from bullying and harassment by settlers and the authorities. Last December, a settler who came from the direction of the outpost attacked two activists near the Farisiyah Palestinian community, and they needed hospital treatment. Recently, a Palestinian family from the Farisiyah community, near which the outpost was established, was forced to leave their homes. In this video, Didi is seen driving into a herd of sheep and then attacking an activist and throwing his phone. ### Chronology of the expansion of Rottem Settlement violence **In 2016,** Israel has announced a new master plan for expanding the Rotem colony in the northern Palestinian Jordan Valley, seizing 1,574.3 dunums of Palestinian land that was originally confiscated in 1980 for "military purposes." The plan includes residential expansion, tourism, agricultural and industrial facilities, and public spaces. Rotem, initially a military base, later became an agricultural settlement and continues to receive significant state support, while Palestinians in the area face severe restrictions. The expansion violates multiple UN Security Council resolutions and international law, which prohibit Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territories. **On February 20217** Israeli settlers from Rotem colony have begun establishing a new outpost to the west of Rotem, in the Palestinian area of Wad Al-Malih, Tubas governorate. The settlers have set up two caravans as the initial step in taking over more Palestinian land. This expansion violates Palestinian land rights and threatens further land confiscation. The Israeli government's support for such outposts, through proposed legalization bills, accelerates the process of settlement expansion. This is part of a broader pattern of Israeli colonization in the West Bank, which contravenes multiple UN Security Council resolutions and international law prohibiting settlements in occupied territories. **On April 19, 2022** Israeli settlers installed two caravans in the Ihmayyer area, part of Palestinian land belonging to the Al Farsiya community. This marks the beginning of a potential new settlement, a process that has been repeated in nearby areas, like Maskiyyot. Over time, such settlements grow, leading to the construction of permanent housing, roads, and other infrastructure, all supported and protected by the Israeli military. This expansion is part of a broader policy of land confiscation and ethnic cleansing aimed at displacing Palestinian communities from the Jordan Valley. On the same day, Israel's National Nature Assessment Program declared the nearby Ein El-Hilwe area a nature reserve, renaming it after Israeli colonies and erasing the Palestinian presence. This follows a history of restricting Palestinian access to the land, which had previously been declared a closed military zone. The community is concerned that the installation of the nature reserve sign is the first step in further restricting their access and control over the land. **On March 2024** Luai Abu Muhsen, a 42-year-old resident of al-Farisiyah, describes the ongoing harassment and violence his family faces from Israeli settlers in the area, especially over the past two years. They are frequently blocked from accessing pasture, beaten, and their tractor has been confiscated twice. On December 17, 2023, while tending to their sheep, settlers in a pickup truck deliberately ran over two sheep and attacked Luai's brother, Barakat, with a sharp object, causing a deep wound. Despite calling for help, the Israeli police and army arrived but did nothing, demonstrating their collaboration with the settlers. Luai expresses frustration, noting that settlers have fenced off their land, making it harder to sustain their livestock. The settlers have become dominant in the Jordan Valley, and the Abu Muhsen family feels unsupported by authorities. Other families have been forced to leave due to threats and violence, and Luai highlights the lack of action from the Israeli authorities. Recently, Israeli activists have been staying in the community to offer protection, but the settlers’ violence continues, including destroying tents and intimidating those who attempt to support the Palestinian community. **On Augustus 21, 2024** The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) has reported that recent settler violence in the occupied West Bank has led to the "largest forcible transfer" of Palestinians since October 7.Three Palestinian communities, totaling 119 individuals, have been displaced in the last ten days due to attacks by illegal settlers who established new outposts and blocked access to water. Two communities, *Al-Farsiya Khallet Khader* and *Al-Farisiya al-Zu’bi*, have been completely abandoned, while only one family remains in *Ein al-Hilweh – Um al-Jmal*. The NRC holds Israel responsible as the occupying power for the actions of the settlers, emphasizing that these actions are a grave violation of international law. The violence has displaced or put at risk the remaining 18 communities in the Al-Maleh region, causing significant damage to Palestinian livelihoods and violating their rights. The NRC also highlighted that humanitarian aid worth nearly a quarter of a million euros has been affected or destroyed by settlers. The organization has called for Israel to shut down illegal settler outposts, investigate settler attacks, and hold perpetrators accountable. Additionally, reports revealed that illegal settlers have intentionally started 273 fires on Palestinian land since October 7, contributing to further violence and displacement. **On March 2, 2025** Israeli settlers released their livestock into the rain-fed crops of Palestinian farmers in Khirbet al-Farsiya village, located in the northern Jordan Valley, region, northeast of the occupied West Bank. They grazed their sheep in the Palestinian agricultural fields, causing significant damage to the crops. Settler routinely allow their livestock to graze in Palestinian farmland, leading to considerable losses. Annually, they destroy hundreds of dunums of agricultural land in the northern Jordan Valley, in addition to blocking Palestinian farmers from grazing their livestock, raiding their homes, intimidating families, and attempting to steal livestock. **On March 26:** - Three settlers, led by Gilad Amosi, invaded the Palestinian village of al-Farsiya at 01.00 A.M., one of them drove around on an ATV, shouting at residents and human rights activists. Then the settlers set up camp on the hill 50 meters away from the village. - The activists confronted the settlers, who called Israeli police. The police arrived, questioned the activists, got their ID numbers and left. For the next 2.5 hours the settlers sat on the hill and the activists monitored them from the village. - At 03.30 A.M. one of the settlers, armed with an M16 assault rifle, invaded the village once again. When he was confronted by the activists and residents, he started pushing them, and then hit three people with the barrel of his gun. All three sustained minor injuries. The settler then cocked his gun and pointed it at the activists and residents, including children. After being further confronted and filmed by the activists, he retreated back to the hill. - At 06.00 A.M. Israeli Occupation soldiers invaded the village together with the police. They once again pointed weapons at the human rights activists, threatened and pushed them. Israeli police arrested one of the activists. - This is part of an escalating campaign of ethnic cleansing of the Jordan Valley. Almost daily, the Palestinian village of al-Farsiya is being targeted by settler terror, spearheaded by settler leader Didi Amosi (see picture, left), and the security coordinator of the settlement Rotem Daniel Ran (see picture, right). Several Palestinian communities in the area have already been expelled, and without urgent intervention, the same will happen to al-Farsiya. **On Augustus 13, 2025:** at around 3am, settlers attacked one of the families in Khirbet Al-Farsiyya, resulting in the injury of one of the Palestinian residents. Ten settlers descended the hill toward the family’s tents without using lights, going completely unnoticed by the residents who were sleeping. They attacked Shamekh Daraghmeh’s eldest son, Mustafa. The settlers were dressed in dark, military-style clothing and had their faces covered. While Mustafa was lying in bed, they pepper-sprayed him, attempted to strangle him with a metal chain, and cut his leg with a sharp object, causing an injury in his leg that required four stitches. As soon as other family members awoke and found the settlers right outside their tents, they resisted the attack. The assailants quickly fled, running back over the hill toward the outpost from which they had come. The families in Al-Farisiya are under constant threat of being evicted or attacked by settlers. Just a few weeks earlier, Abu Mustafa Daraghmeh was assaulted by a group of settlers while shepherding his herd. He sustained multiple injuries and 17 of his sheep were stolen.

This village in Masafer Yatta area was regularly harass by violent settlers in order to steal their land. The police's deliberate daily disregard for these crimes enables and legitimizes future attacks. The apartheid regime's unwillingness to enforce the law on settlers serves as an incentive for their acts of terror. ## Chronology : **2020** **On April 21, 2020**, Jabarin Abu ‘Aram, a 56-year-old father of nine, was grazing his flock near Qawawis when two settlers from the Mitzpe Yair outpost approached him. One pepper-sprayed him, and both threw stones at him, stealing two of his goats. Abu ‘Aram’s wife intervened, but the settlers fled with the goats. Despite reporting the incident and providing evidence to the police, no action was taken, and the goats were never returned. Abu ‘Aram expressed frustration at the lack of protection, noting that settlers operate with impunity, leaving his family in fear of constant attacks. The outpost of Mitzpe Yair, established in 1998, has a history of encroaching on Palestinian lands near Route 317. [source](https://www.btselem.org/node/212932) **2024** **On Sunday, March 17,** Jibril Nu’man, 59, was grazing his flock on his private land near Qawawis when a settler soldier ordered him to leave. After refusing, Nu’man and another shepherd, Taleb Nu’man, were handcuffed, detained for five hours without food during Ramadan, and taken to a military camp before being released later that evening. **On Saturday, March 23,** Jibril Nu’man was again grazing his flock, this time with three Israeli activists, when a settler arrived, followed by two masked soldiers. One soldier threatened Nu’man with a gun, argued over the land’s ownership, and forced him to hand over his ID. After further confrontation, the soldiers tied and blindfolded Nu’man, beat him, and took him to a nearby camp, where he was detained for several hours without food, water, or the ability to pray. He was eventually dropped off far from his village. In a testimony he gave [B'tselem](https://www.btselem.org/video/20240522_soldiers_assaulted_shepherds_in_qawawis_in_south_hebron_hills#full) field researcher Basel al-Adrah on 23 March 2024, Jibril Nu’man recounted his detention by soldiers, some of whom he recognized as settlers **On May 15,** Jibrin Abu Aram was arrested for the fourth time in recent months while on his private land by the soldiers-settlers from the Mitzpe Yair outpost, which has been attempting to seize Qawawis' land for years. The stated reason was his presence near an illegal road built by settlers on Palestinian land. Even under apartheid laws, Palestinians are allowed near the road, but colonial practices disregard such laws. **2025** **On January 2:** When settlers attacked Jibrin Abu Aram's neighbor the day before, the army and police refused to intervene, highlighting their role in perpetuating abuse against Palestinians to force them off their land. Settlers infiltrated the village of Qawawis late at night and attacked Khaled Al-Najjar brutally. This is not the first time that Najjar has been injured in a settler attack; in 2001, he was seriously wounded when a settler shot him in the stomach. Yesterday, solidarity activists and residents of Qawawis tried several times to speak with the police and urged them to expel the settlers who invade the village lands and destroy fruit trees with their herds, but the police merely ask the settler to move. Five minutes later, as he goes deeper into the Palestinian orchards with his herd, they refuse to send the police back to the scene  **On April 20:** According to masafering, On the moning, three residents of the village of Gwawis went out to harvest barley on their land, near the ruins of Jibrin's house. A uniformed man riding an ATV arrived at the scene, forced them to stop working, and ordered them to sit on the ground in the scorching sun. More soldiers soon arrived and held the landowners for an hour, without providing any explanation. This is a systematic practice of harassment and intimidation as part of the attempt to uproot Palestinian communities from their land: farmers are exhausted with baseless delays every time they work their land, until they stop working it, which makes it legally easier to expropriate it and in practice easier for settlers to do with it as they please.