On Tuesday, 30 August 2022, at around 5:00 P.M., three young settlers drove a car through the village of Kisan in Bethlehem District. They sped inside the village and ran over a goat belonging to a local resident. They then tried to escape, but their car was blocked by a vehicle carrying cargo and they had to slow down. At that point, children and youths from the village threw stones at them and smashed the car windows. The settlers turned around and left the village.
They returned some 15 minutes later, with about 15 other settlers and about 10 soldiers. The settlers threw stones at village homes in front of the soldiers, who refused to intervene when locals approached them. Some youths from the village threw stones at the settlers in an attempt to fend them off. One of the settlers drew a handgun and fired a single bullet towards the village residents. The soldiers fired a barrage of tear gas canisters at the homes, causing some residents to choke. They received first aid from Palestinian paramedics who arrived at the scene. At around 7:00 P.M., the settlers and most of the soldiers left the village.
It is not uncommon for settlers to enter Kisan. Local residents, especially the shepherds, are by now used to harassment almost every day. While violent assaults, as occurred in this incident, are rarer, they do occur in the village due to Israel’s overall policy in the West Bank. This policy also explains why soldiers were present during the incident, why they refused to intervene and protect the Palestinian residents, and why they took action only after Palestinians began throwing stones too.
On 1 September 2022, B’Tselem field researcher Manal al-Ja’bari collected testimonies from residents of Kisan who were hurt in the incident.
Saleh al-’Abayat (59), a father of eight, said:
I have 250 heads of sheep, which provide my family’s livelihood. On 30 August 2022, at around 5:00 P.M., I was sitting by my house. A car with three young settlers inside drove along the nearby road at a crazy speed. They ran over a goat that belongs to our neighbor, ‘Adnan al-’Abayat, near his house. The settlers tried to get away, but a vehicle carrying hay was driving in front of them, so they had to slow down. Some kids and young guys from the village threw stones at them and shattered the windows.
The settlers turned around and drove off. About 15 minutes later, they came back with more than 15 settlers and two military jeeps, which let out about 10 soldiers. The settlers threw stones at village homes in front of the soldiers. Some residents asked the soldiers to make the settlers to back away, but the soldiers ignored them, so some kids and young guys started throwing stones too, to try and make the settlers leave. One of the settlers drew a handgun and fired one shot in their direction, and the soldiers started firing dozens of tear gas canisters at village homes. I heard women and children screaming all over the village. Before I managed to run away and take cover, some tear gas canisters landed near me. I think there were four. The gas surrounded me from every direction, and I fell down. I passed out, and when I came to, maybe a few minutes later, I saw I was far from my house and next to a Palestinian ambulance whose crew was giving me first aid. They put an oxygen mask on my face. The soldiers were still firing tear gas canisters.
At around 7:00 P.M., a Civil Administration car arrived. An officer, who I think is the area commander, got out. He shouted at the residents who were throwing stones at the settlers, and then the soldiers and the settlers left. Red Crescent crews treated people who were choking on the tear gas. I still have trouble breathing, and my eyes are stinging. Thank God, my grandchildren weren’t hurt. My daughter-in-law took them to the top floor and shut the windows and doors, so they weren’t hurt.
‘Adnan al-’Abayat (33), a father of three, said:
On Tuesday, 30 August 2022, at around 5:00 P.M., I was sitting in the yard by the house with my family. I saw a car with an Israeli license plate speeding along a road in our village, with three young settlers inside. Three children who were playing on the road ran away. The car kept going and ran over a goat of ours that was in the pasture by our house, near the road. After that the settlers tried to escape, but a vehicle carrying hay was driving ahead of them so they had to slow down. Some young guys and kids from the village attacked the car with stones and smashed its windows. At some point, the settlers managed to get away.
About 15 minutes later, they came back with more settlers and two military jeeps. They threw stones at residents’ homes, and the soldiers did nothing to try and stop them. Young guys from the village threw stones back at them, and then one of the settlers drew his gun and fired one bullet in their direction. At that point, the soldiers started raining tear gas canisters down on the homes. The canisters landed in the yards of homes, making many residents choke, including elderly people, children and sick people. My wife Sabah (32) and our little kids choked on it, too. I tried to reassure them, to take them inside and give them first aid, but before I could do it, one of the canisters hit my 7-year-old son Ayham on the left side of his face.
While I was trying to help him, I saw my neighbor, Saleh al-’Abayat (59), choke and fall over. I left Ayham with my wife and ran over to him, and a tear gas canister hit me in the left leg. In the meantime, two Palestinian ambulances came and gave us all first aid. They bandaged my leg.
At around 7:00 P.M., an officer came in a Civil Administration car, and it was only then that the soldiers stopped firing tear gas. The settlers left the area. The officer yelled at us, accusing us of attacking the settlers and wrecking their car, and then he left the area with the rest of the soldiers, except six who stayed.
Samaher al-’Abayat (41), a mother of eight, said:
At around 5:30 P.M., I was sitting with my family in the yard when I heard screaming in the village. We saw settlers attacking the village. Before I managed to get the children inside, and before my husband managed to get the flock into the pen, tear gas canisters started landing in the yard. My young kids, ‘Ali (4), Ahmad (6), Azhar (7) and Jawaher (9), started screaming and crying. One of the canisters hit a sheep directly in the leg. The kids felt like they were choking, and their eyes stung. They screamed and writhed in pain. Ahmad has liver disease, and the first thing on my mind was getting him away from the yard, where the canisters were falling and sending gas clouds up everywhere. My husband choked too, while he was trying to gather all the flock to get them inside the pen.
I tried to calm the children down after I got them inside. I tried using onion to ease the effect of the gas. Then a team of Palestinian paramedics came to the village. They gave us first aid – my husband, my young boys and me. The tear gas firing went on until about 7:00 P.M. My kids didn’t sleep that night because of the pain and stinging in their eyes, especially Ahmad, who also had a stomach ache. My eyes also still hurt and sting, and I’m having trouble seeing.