Israel settlers build illegal home, raid Palestinian youth centre in West Bank

Israeli settlers have set up a mobile home on Palestinian land in Qaryout village located southwest of the West Bank’s Nablus, according to official news agency Wafa.

The mobile home was placed by the illegal Israeli settlement of Shilo, who are taking advantage of the lockdown in light of the coronavirus outbreak to seize Palestinian land and establish a settlement outpost,  Palestinian official in charge of the settlements file in the northern West Bank, Ghassan Daghlas, explained.

Three new coronavirus cases were confirmed in the occupied West Bank today, it has raised the total of people who have tested positive for COVID-19 in the West Bank and Gaza Strip to 291, said the Palestinian Health Minister, Mai Al-Kaila.

READ: Israel settlers infected with coronavirus brutally attack Palestinian civilians

Under international law, Jewish settlements constructed in the Occupied Palestinian Territories constitute a violation of international law and are considered illegal.

In Hebron, Israeli settlers attempted to raid a Palestinian youth club in the occupied city last night.

The settlers, who were protected by the Israeli army, attacked the centre run by the Youth Against Settlements group, located in the Tel Rumeida neighbourhood, but they were chased away by locals.

Israel has illegally occupied the West Bank since 1967, and commits various abuses against Palestinian civilians, human rights groups say.

Around 600,000 Israelis live in Jewish-only settlements across occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank, according to official data.

READ: There is no humanitarian value in Israel temporarily halting Palestinian home demolitions