Settlers reportedly rob Palestinian restaurant near Nablus, set it ablaze

Settlers said to steal cash, video shows charred interior of eatery; settlers also reportedly run over and pepper-spray residents of West Bank Bedouin community, ATV driver nabbed

By Nurit Yohanan

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Today, 12:08 pm

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Nurit Yohanan is The Times of Israel's Palestinian and Arab world correspondent

Settlers reportedly broke into a restaurant near the West Bank city of Nablus and stole cash before setting it on fire, completely destroying it overnight Saturday-Sunday.

The restaurant’s owner, who also serves as the head of the Lubban ash-Sharqiya village council, Yaqub Oweis, told the Palestinian news agency Wafa that the damage is estimated at around NIS 1 million (approximately $330,000).

Footage shows people inspecting the charred insides of the eatery, which appears to be entirely destroyed.

Elsewhere in the West Bank, settlers arrived at a family’s home in the Masafer Yatta region, harassed them, and cut their electricity line, Wafa reported on Sunday.

Palestinian media also reported that settlers arrived at a Bedouin community near Khan al-Ahmar, east of Jericho, on Friday evening. According to footage from the scene, settlers deliberately rammed several residents and sprayed pepper spray at others. Several people were reportedly lightly injured.

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Separate footage published later shows police arriving at the scene. According to the reports, officers arrested several residents and detained the ATV driver.

At dawn today, Israeli settlers torched a Palestinian-owned cafeteria in the village of Al-Lubban al-Sharqiya, south of Nablus in the occupied West Bank, resulting in heavy damage to the site. pic.twitter.com/4En6BHgWpj

— Government Communication Center (@pal_gcc_en) July 5, 2026

Israeli settlers, some of them armed with rifles, broke into a Palestinian family's home yard this morning in the Bedouin community of Khirbet Sha'b Al-Butm in the Masafer Yatta region, south of Hebron in the occupied West Bank.

During the raid, they partially vandalized the… pic.twitter.com/Up47uuasY1

— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) July 5, 2026

A security official said the ATV driver and a suspect accused of spraying pepper spray remain in custody.

Settler attacks on Palestinians take place on a daily basis in the West Bank, often with the tacit approval or active participation of IDF soldiers, including settlers tasked with protecting their own communities as part of the IDF reserves.

مستـ. وطن يرش غاز الفلفل على عدد من الأهالي خلال اعتـ. داء على تجمع التبنة البدوي قرب الخان الأحمر شرق القدس، أثناء تصدي السكان لمحاولة سرقة أغنام تعود لهم. pic.twitter.com/rCc8UHGARE

— فلسطين بوست (@PalpostN) July 3, 2026

دهسَ مستوطنٌ إسرائيلي شابين فلسطينيين بسيارته، فيما قام مستوطنٌ آخر برشّ رذاذ الفلفل على مجموعة من الشبان خلال هجوم للمستوطنين على تجمع التبانة البدوي بالقرب من الخان الأحمر شرق القدس. وأسفر الاعتداء عن إصابة الشابين بكدمات وجروح متفاوتة. pic.twitter.com/CdeUjllTak

— حازم ???? (@ABO_Watan9) July 4, 2026

Attacks regularly take place on Friday nights and Saturdays, during the Jewish Shabbat rest day, even though many of the alleged perpetrators are religious.

The attacks, which have spiked since the Hamas-led onslaught of October 7, 2023, are rarely prosecuted. However, six teenagers were indicted Friday on terror charges for allegedly attacking Palestinians in the Ramallah area earlier this month, including setting fire to a mosque with worshippers inside.

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