Katz to hold ‘urgent meeting’ on settler attacks against Israeli army
Palestinian journalist Azzam Abu al-Adas said that settlers are waging an ‘uprising’ against the Israeli military in the occupied West Bank, demanding more freedom in attacks against Palestinians
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said on 30 June that he will hold an “urgent meeting” with security officials to discuss a surge in settler attacks against Israel’s military and security forces, just hours after an army facility was vandalized by illegal settlers.
“This phenomenon must be put to an immediate end. We will take all necessary measures and completely uproot this violence. No one will dare raise a hand against IDF soldiers and members of the security forces,” the defense minister said in a statement.
Overnight, Israeli settlers set fire to a military operational security facility in the occupied West Bank and wrote slogans on it.
An operational technological system used by the Israeli army’s Central Command was damaged as a result of the fire.
In addition, three to five military vehicles had their tires punctured overnight during a protest and riot at the entrance to the Central Command Brigade headquarters in Beit El, north of Ramallah.
In recent months, settler violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank has surged significantly, coinciding with an acceleration of illegal land grabs and settlement expansion.
While the settler attacks take place, for the most part, under the protection and backing of Israeli troops, tensions have erupted over the past several days.
On 29 June, dozens of settlers attacked army and police forces outside the Binyamin Brigade’s headquarters in the central occupied West Bank.
The attack came after a 14-year-old settler was wounded by gunfire. The Israeli military is investigating whether the boy was injured by an army bullet.
Overnight into Saturday, six Israeli settlers were arrested by the army after assaulting reservists near the Palestinian village of Kafr Malik, which has been under continuous attack by settlers and military forces recently.
Clashes erupted between soldiers and settlers during the arrest.
“Israeli settlers in the West Bank appear to be waging what resembles their first ‘popular uprising; – not against occupation, but against the Israeli army – demanding the unleashing of settler potential for expansion and attacks on Palestinians,” Palestinian journalist and expert on Israeli affairs Azzam Abu al-Adas wrote.
Three Palestinians were shot dead by Israeli troops in Kafr Malik on Wednesday, coinciding with a settler attack on the village.
Five settlers were arrested by the military that day, but were released soon after.
Israeli settler violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank has reached unprecedented levels in 2025, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
In a report in late May, OCHA documented over 220 Palestinian injuries so far this year – an average of 44 per month – marking the highest monthly attack rate in the past 20 years.
The report highlighted the forced displacement of the entire Bedouin community of Mughayyir al-Deir – roughly consisting of 120 people – following the establishment of a fourth unauthorized Israeli settler outpost nearby.