Israeli soldiers ‘fire in air’ as settlers ‘pelt’ them with rocks

Israeli occupation forces fired in the air after being “pelted with rocks” by Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank on Saturday.

According to the Times of Israel, three young settlers were arrested following the clashes which broke out when Israeli forces arrived to evacuate residents of an unauthorised outpost.

As settlers threw rocks, the report stated that “IDF and Border Police forces responded with live shots in the air, as well as tear gas and other riot-dispersal means”, with the army claiming that “soldiers had feared for their lives”.

The “Rosh Yosef” outpost was established close to Itamar settlement in the northern West Bank three weeks ago.

After the soldiers first dismantled the structures on Friday, some ten young settlers returned the next day, “prompting forces to try to carry out arrests”.

Read: Jewish settlers occupy two more Palestinian homes in Hebron

The Times of Israel reported that “the three detainees — a minor and two adults — were taken for questioning by police interrogators on suspicion of assaulting a public official and obstructing soldiers from carrying out their duties, police said in a statement.”

Israeli authorities distinguish between authorised and unauthorised settlements (the latter typically dubbed “outposts”). Under international law, all Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory are illegal.

Israel has on numerous occasions been criticised for showing leniency in cases of settler violence while having a heavy handed response to unarmed Palestinian protesters in the occupied territories.