The Israeli authorities in the West Bank have begun the demolition of several homes located in the north of this Palestinian territory, as a direct response to the clashes recorded last Friday in the village of Tell. In that attack, led by settlers, six people died: four Palestinians and two Israelis, a reservist and a soldier.
The Israeli Minister of Finance, Bezalel Smotrich, publicly defended these actions and other measures in the area. "We continue to enforce the law and prevent illegal construction and occupation by Arabs in Judea and Samaria. For too many years they have acted in the territory as if it were theirs. This is over," he stated in a message disseminated on social media, where he insisted that the West Bank is "an inseparable part of the State of Israel and constitutes its security strip."
In that same intervention, with a marked campaign tone ahead of the legislative elections scheduled for the end of October, Smotrich emphasized that "he will not allow the left to return to power" and return Israel "to the days of Oslo and the terrible waves of terrorism."
The serious incident on Friday in the town of Tell, in the West Bank, occurred when a group of settlers attacked several houses located in the eastern part of the village, near the settlement of Havat Gilad, south of the West Bank city of Nablus, according to the official Palestinian agency WAFA. The assault ended with six people deceased.
According to these Palestinian sources, several Israeli soldiers and settlers allegedly opened fire "indiscriminately" against Palestinian civilians in the area. Among the Palestinian victims are two brothers and their cousins. Local authorities explain that a verbal argument with the settlers escalated into a fight when neighbors tried to confront the attack.
The version of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) differs from this account. They claim that their troops were sent to an area near Tell after several settlers reported being attacked while hiking in the surroundings. "A terrorist stole a weapon from an officer and opened fire on Israeli civilians," the IDF indicated.
In parallel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised to act with "firmness" and ordered to reinforce the military deployment in the West Bank. Among the announced measures, he included the demolition of the homes of those allegedly involved in the attack.