How these Palestinians thwarted settlers in northern West Bank
The Palestnian residents of Beita in the northern West Bank have held off settlers who tried for the fourth time to establish an outpost on the top of a strategic mount near their town.
RAMALLAH, West Bank — Muhammad Hamayel, a 15-year-old from the town of Beita, southeast of Nablus in the northern West Bank, was shot dead by the Israeli army during the clashes that took place in the town June 11, in protest against the outpost established on the lands of Jabal Sbeih in the town.
The town of Beita has turned into a heated confrontation point between the Palestinian residents and the Israeli army and settlers, in light of the latter’s attempt to establish a settlement outpost called Avitar atop Jabal Sbeih (Mount Sbeih).
Since the beginning of settlement activity at the top of the mountain May 3, the people of Beita have been engaged in daily confrontations that seem to escalate every Friday, with the participation of the residents of the two nearby towns of Yatma and Qablan, to counter the settlers’ takeover of the mountain. The confrontations have resulted in the death of four young men — Muhammad Hamayel; Issa Barham, a doctor from Beita who was killed May 14; Tariq Sanubar, a young man from Yatma killed May 16; and Zakaria Hamayel, a teacher from Beita killed May 28 — while hundreds of others were injured.
The settlers’ latest attempt to seize Jabal Sbeih came after a settler was killed at the Zaatara checkpoint in a shooting attack carried out by Mutassim al-Shalabi May 2.
