Description

Photos:
Scenes. Published by IMEMC News

The mosque that was set on fire in the West Bank on Thursday morning. Published by Haaretz

Burned inside of the mosque in the West Bank. Published by Haaretz

Palestinians inspect parts of a burned house after an Israeli settler attack in the village of Beit Lid, east of Tulkarm in the West Bank on Tuesday. Credit: AFP/JAAFAR ASHTIYEH. Published by Haaretz
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by IMEMC News
Nov 13, 2025

At dawn Thursday, illegal paramilitary Israeli colonizers set fire to the Hajja Hamida Mosque, located between the towns of Deir Istiya and Kifl Haris, near Salfit, in the central part of the occupied West Bank.

The attackers poured flammable liquids at the mosque’s entrance and defaced its walls with racist, anti-Arab and anti-Muslim graffiti in Hebrew.

Local activist Nazmi Salman, who monitors colonizer violations told the Palestinian News & Info Agency (WAFA) that the colonizers attempted to burn the mosque, but swift intervention by villagers prevented the fire from spreading throughout the building.

The flames still caused damage inside, and the graffiti included slurs such as “Muhammad is a pig” and “We’re not afraid of Avi Blot,” referring to the commander of Israel’s Central Command.

The Palestinian Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs condemned the attack as a heinous crime and a deliberate assault on Islamic sanctities.

In an official statement, the ministry described the arson as a clear reflection of the “barbarity of Israel’s racist incitement machine” targeting both Islamic and Christian holy sites in Palestine.

The statement emphasized that no place of worship is safe under the constant wave of colonizer and military violence, calling the attack a provocative act of religious hatred and part of a systematic escalation in both frequency and severity.

The ministry further noted that repeated assaults on mosques—including arson, closures, and bans on the call to prayer—are evidence of the aggressive and lawless nature of the Israeli occupation.

It stressed that such crimes violate all international laws and conventions that guarantee freedom of worship and the sanctity of religious sites.

The Ministry of Endowments urged international Islamic institutions—including the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the Islamic Conference—as well as Arab and Muslim-majority states to take urgent action to halt these escalating violations.

It also called on local councils and residents to remain vigilant during this critical period, warning that settler attacks on religious and civilian infrastructure are intensifying across the West Bank.

On Wednesday, illegal Israeli colonizers carried out a number of attacks against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, resulting in the injury of at least four citizens, including a woman in Bethlehem, Jericho, and Salfit. Occupation forces razed land and expropriated 38 dunams of land belonging to the town of Beit Ummar, north of Hebron in the southern West Bank.

All of Israel’s colonies in the occupied West Bank, including those in and around occupied East Jerusalem, are illegal under International Law, the Fourth Geneva Convention in addition to various United Nations and Security Council resolutions. They also constitute war crimes under International Law.

Article 33 of the Fourth Geneva Convention prohibits collective punishment and acts of terror against civilian populations.

Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention states: “The Occupying Power shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies.” It also prohibits the “individual or mass forcible transfers, as well as deportations of protected persons from occupied territory”.

Articles 53 and 147, prohibit the destruction of civilian property and classify pillage as a war crime.
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Palestinian Reports: Settlers Torch, Vandalize West Bank Mosque

According to the Wafa news agency, settlers set fire to the entrance of the mosque and sprayed threatening graffiti on its outer walls. The arson comes a day after the IDF acknowledged a sharp rise in cases of Jewish terrorism in the West Bank, but said it stemmed from 'fringe' groups unrepresentative of the majority of settlers

by Jack Khoury and Matan Golan for Haaretz
Nov 13, 2025

Settlers set fire to a mosque located between the villages of Deir Istiya and Qal Hars in the West Bank and vandalized its outer walls, the Palestinian news agency Wafa reported on Thursday.

Activist Nazmi al-Salman told Wafa that local residents managed to prevent the fire from spreading to the entire building, though it still caused damage.

Along with the arson, the settlers sprayed graffiti on the mosque's walls, including phrases such as "Vengeance will be returned to His enemies," and "We're not afraid of Avi Bluth" – a reference to the IDF's Central Command chief, who oversees soldiers in the West Bank.

In recent months, there has been a significant increase in Israeli nationalist crime in the West Bank. On Saturday, the UN published a report stating that the number of incidents of settler violence in the West Bank in October was the highest since January 2006, when the UN began documenting such cases. The report documented 264 incidents of settler violence recorded in the month – an average of more than eight attacks per day. Security establishment figures are lower. By the end of October of this year, the IDF had documented 704 cases of nationalist crime, compared to 675 incidents in all of 2024.

A source in the Central Command on Wednesday acknowledged the increase in Jewish terrorism in the area, but said it stems from what he described as "fringe anarchist teenagers" who "do not represent the 560,000 Jewish settlers" in the West Bank.

Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir also condemned the violence as "actions of a criminal minority that tarnishes a law-abiding public."

"These acts are contrary to the IDF's values, constitute a red line, and divert the forces' attention from their mission – the defense of the settlements and offensive operations," Zamir said on Wednesday.

The IDF is "determined to put an end to this phenomenon and will act decisively until justice is served," he added.

Democrats party chair Yair Golan responded to Thursday's incident, writing on X that the mosque arson was "a dangerous escalation in Jewish terrorism in Judea and Samaria" and "a very serious and severe attack on a religious symbol – a despicable act."

"The forgiving and encouraging attitude of [National Security Minister] Ben-Gvir and [Finance Minister] Smotritch" to such violent incidents is a "serious security threat," he added.

"There must be no selective law enforcement," concluded Golan.