BICOM

A group of Jewish West Bank settlers was yesterday forcibly detained by Palestinians in the village of Kusra after they were suspected of preparing to carry out a ‘Price Tag’ attack. The settlers were later handed over to the IDF.

‘Price Tag’ attacks, acts of vandalism against Palestinian property by those opposed to curbs on settlement building, have typically been perpetrated in response to Israeli government restrictions on settlement activity. Early yesterday, Israel’s Civil Administration uprooted olive trees illegally planted by settlers near the West Bank outpost of Esh Kodesh, situated near Kusra, which led to initial clashes between settlers, local Palestinians and security forces.

Later in the day, a group of 14 settlers are alleged to have approached Kusra in an attempt to carry out a revenge attack. Local Palestinians said the group attacked a youth, while the setters claimed they were innocently hiking in the area when they were surrounded by Kusra residents. Channel Two reported the settlers were held at a construction site for two hours and some were beaten, receiving light to moderate injuries. Village elders appeared to prevent more serious injuries or deaths. Mukhtar of Kusra, Abed Al-Ain Wasli, told Channel Two that the villagers “could have killed them” but spared their lives “because we are Muslims, we are responsible people… and because they are human beings even if they were hostile.”

A Palestinian Authority (PA) liaison force arrived in the village and the settlers were eventually handed over to the IDF one by one after a group of around 200 Palestinians had arrived on the scene, some kicking and spitting at the settlers as they were led away. Israeli police later arrested four of the settlers, while three were taken to hospital for treatment. An IDF statement indicated that a ‘Price Tag’ attack had been attempted, saying “Initial inquiry suggests the confrontation erupted following a law enforcement activity which took place earlier today in Esh Kodesh.”