Revenge Campaign
Following the death of 18-year-old Yehuda Sherman, who was reportedly hit by a vehicle driven by a Palestinian, Israeli settlers launched a series of attacks on Palestinian villages in the occupied West Bank. WhatsApp groups used by settlers called for a "revenge campaign" after Sherman's death. More than 20 settler attacks were reported overnight, according to a defense official. The villages of Jalud, Qaryut, al-Funduqmiya and Silat al-Dhah were among those targeted. According to the Palestinian news agency WAFA, six communities were targeted in total.
Arson and Assault
Dozens of Israeli settlers stormed the Palestinian village of Jalud near Nablus during Eid al-Fitr, torching homes and vehicles. Settlers also rampaged through Palestinian areas in the West Bank on Saturday night, damaging property and hospitalizing Palestinians. At least three Palestinians suffered head wounds and were hospitalized after confronting the attackers in Jalud. One photo showed the words "Avenge Yehuda" spray-painted onto a building.
Lack of Accountability
Israeli security forces responded to the attacks but made no arrests. Yesh Din, an Israeli civil rights group, described the attacks as "a night of pogroms." The group stated that forces failed to prepare accordingly, and no preventive measures were put in place to stop the pogroms, and no suspects have been arrested. The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the assault, saying it involved the burning of homes and property, terrorising and killing of civilians, and the targeting of vital roads, junctions, and main streets during Eid al-Fitr.
Government Response
The Israel Defense Forces said that its troops and border police units were dispatched to several Palestinian villages on Saturday night, after receiving reports of Israeli civilians committing acts of arson against structures and property, as well as engaging in disturbances in the area. Lt Gen Eyal Zamir, the IDF's chief of staff, said the violence by settlers in the West Bank was "morally and ethically unacceptable." More than 500 people were in attendance for the funeral of Yehuda Sherman on Sunday afternoon, including Israel's far-right finance minister Bezalel Smotrich.
Rising Casualties
Since the start of the year, seven Palestinians have been killed by Israeli settlers and 18 by Israeli forces, according to the UN, with 15 of the killings taking place since the war in Iran started. More than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli troops and settlers since October 2023.
International Condemnation
The EU and UK demanded that Israel halt the surge in settler violence against Palestinians which has taken place since the war in Iran began on February 28. The establishment of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank has been condemned by most of the world's countries as illegal under international law. The International Court of Justice stated that Israel has "an obligation to cease immediately all new settlement activities, and to evacuate all settlers from the occupied Palestinian Territory."
Displacement Crisis
The UN said that Israel had forcibly displaced more than 30,000 Palestinians in the West Bank. Since the start of 2026, more than 1,500 Palestinians have been displaced by Israeli settler attacks and access restrictions, equivalent to 95 percent of the total recorded in 2025. The West Bank is home to some 3 million Palestinians.
There were unconfirmed reports that settler groups had again begun to gather outside some Palestinian villages, with local news agency WAFA reporting they had set fire to a car wash north-west of Nablus.
