Description

Photo:
Scene. Published by Maan News
_____

JERUSALEM (Ma'an) -- Israeli settlers damaged and vandalized Palestinian vehicles in the Jerusalem-area town of Hizma in the central occupied West Bank, in what locals are calling a “price tag attack.”

Samar Salah al-Din, mayor of Hizma, told Ma'an that a group of Israeli settlers attempted to raid three houses in the town belonging to the Askar family.

After they failed to raid the houses, settlers sprayed racist anti-Arab graffiti on walls and vehicles and punctured the tires of some four vehicles, according to Salah al-Din.

Many Palestinian activists and rights groups have accused Israel of fostering a “culture of impunity”for Israelis committing violent acts against Palestinians.

Better known as "price tag" attacks, extremist Israeli settlers use violent acts of retribution on Palestinians and their property to demonstrate their opposition to Israeli restrictions on settlements and their outposts in the occupied West Bank.

In March 2017, Israeli NGO Yesh Din revealed that Israeli authorities served indictments in only 8.2 percent of cases of Israeli settlers committing anti-Palestinian crimes in the occupied West Bank in the past three years.

Between 500,000 and 600,000 Israelis live in Jewish-only settlements across occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank in violation of international law, with recent announcements of settlement expansion provoking condemnation from the international community.