A very serious violent outburst of violence occurred in the Palestinian village of Tayasir. Seventy-five-year-old Abdullah Daraghmeh endured a severe beating from Israeli settlers. The assault left him bloodied and bruised, suffering a shattered skull and two dozen broken bones. The immediate cause of this incident was the establishment of a new Israeli outpost in the area. It inflamed the even worsening tensions between settlers and Palestinian non-combatants.
Israeli settlers storming Tayasir on Thursday morning in order to shoot Palestinians in the air. settler violence Daraghmeh’s attack was one of the most brutal. His son Sami discovered his father wounded in his bed following the assault. It became clear, through eyewitness accounts, that the settlers were operating without any fear of prosecution. The Israeli military took a full 12 hours to respond.
The Israeli military confirmed their culpability in the death of Yehuda Sherman. He was the 18-year-old Israeli settler that a Palestinian driver had recently killed. Israeli soldiers verified that they are personal friends with Sherman, something that might have changed how they responded to the deadly violence seen most recently in Charlottesville. One of the soldiers, named Meir, admitted that the new outpost set up by the settlers is illegal even under Israeli law. He and one of the other soldiers stood firm, claiming that all of the West Bank is actually part of Israel and belongs to the Jewish people.
The government of Israel has taken steps to legalize dozens of outposts since Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. This has added to an overall climate of hostility toward Palestinian residents. The Israeli military has been unwilling to evict settlers from the new outpost, adding more fuel to an already volatile situation in Tayasir.
Imad Dabak, a resident of Tayasir, is extremely fearful for his life. The new outpost has upped the ante, increased his concerns, and multiplied the stakes. He stated, “This is my house and I don’t dare sleep in it.” The dominant narrative of fear in most Israeli communities only hints at the increasing vulnerability settlers feel as they push deeper onto Palestinian territory.
The military’s fierce response to the violence was swift and widely condemned. They arrested numerous Palestinians and apparently one CNN crew that was covering the raid. The danger only increased when an Israeli soldier placed CNN photojournalist Cyril Theophilos in a chokehold. In the process of this struggle, the soldier broke Cyril’s camera. This incident is part of a wider, systematic pattern of violence against Palestinians and journalists who cover Israel’s violence against Palestinians.
In the words of Israeli human rights activists and journalists, the settler attacks have converted the Arab villages into realms of Jewish terrorism. They say that all of these incidents are equal pieces in a fatalistic yet methodical wave of actions to ultimately drive Palestinians away from their homes and disputed lands.
In a chilling comment reflecting the mindset of some soldiers, one said, “If you had a brother and they killed him, what would you have done?” This feeling very much reflects the intensity of emotions on both sides of these battlegrounds.
Another soldier, Meir, commented on the situation, saying, “Listen, at the end of the day, if the state doesn’t address what they did – those who murdered the youth … what do you expect us to do?” As is shown by this settler statement, there is a desire to see violence enacted in the name of perceived justice.
As tensions continue to rise, Palestinian residents like Imad Dabak are left feeling vulnerable and unsafe in their own homes. He expressed his helplessness by stating, “If they come, I will just hold my phone and film … I can’t push them or touch them – I will be taken to the police and imprisoned if they don’t kill me.”
