Khirbet ‘Ein a-Rshash, Ramallah District: Israeli settlers enter Palestinian community and home in it, harass residents and graze sheep in their fields. Soldiers detain two Palestinian residents

On Monday, 21 August 2023, at around 6:30 A.M., about ten settlers appeared in Khirbet ‘Ein a-Rashash, three of them in ATVs. The settlers brought a flock of sheep with them and let them graze in the Palestinian residents’ cultivated lands. Three other settlers, one of them armed with a rifle and two on horseback, entered the community, walked among the residents' homes, entered one of them with a soldier, and filmed the occupants claiming they had attacked them.  

The settlers called soldiers, who arrived at the scene at around 9:30 A.M., at which point, some activists who were staying in the community called the police. The Border Police officers who arrived, joined the soldiers. One soldier was filmed telling an activist that the armed settler, who was in civilian clothing, was also a soldier. The forces checked the ID cards of two of the residents and detained them for about half an hour. The forces left at around 11:00 A.M., letting the settlers remain. The settlers left at around 1:00 P.M. 

The next morning, 22 August 2023, settlers again arrived with a flock and grazed it in the community’s cultivated fields, forcing the Palestinian shepherds to feed their flock on purchased fodder. The settlers once again walked around the residents' homes and filmed them for about two hours before leaving. On Wednesday, 23 August 2023, two settlers came to the community again in an ATV, stopped in front of one of the houses and stayed there for about three hours. 

Footage by Arik Ascherma and Omri Eran-Vardi