“The Palestinian has no one to protect him.” With this stark statement, Fatima Abu Naim (Um Rizq), a Palestinian woman, encapsulated the bitter reality her family faces in the village of Al-Mughayyir, northeast of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank. They are living under military siege and brutal attacks by settlers aimed at forcing them to leave their land, a microcosm of the broader situation in the West Bank.
Um Rizq recounts the daily suffering she has endured for the past three years. Her home has become an “isolated prison” after Israeli occupation forces imposed a military barrier around the area 20 days ago, restricting movement in and out of the house. Her children are forced to walk three kilometers to reach their schools, facing constant danger.
The Palestinian woman revealed that her family was brutally attacked two weeks ago when settlers assaulted her 50-year-old mother-in-law and her 13-year-old son, severely beating them in an attempt to terrorize them and drive them from their home. Ambulance crews were unable to reach them due to Israeli obstacles.
Um Rizq emphasized that these attacks are carried out with the full protection of the Israeli army and police, who claim the land is a “military zone” or “belongs to the settler.” She stressed that their steadfastness and refusal to leave provokes the attackers to commit further violations, which have even targeted foreign solidarity activists attempting to stop the attacks.
Um Rizq’s story is not an isolated incident. It is part of a broader pattern of violence. Since October 7, 2023, there have been thousands of attacks in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. These attacks, coinciding with the war in Gaza, have resulted in the deaths of hundreds of Palestinians, including many children, in addition to the forced displacement of numerous Palestinian communities.
In a related incident, Israeli occupation forces recently demolished a residential building in the Silwan neighborhood of occupied Jerusalem, displacing hundreds of Palestinians under the pretext of “lack of permits.”
