Local sources reported that Jewish colonists attacked the industrial area in Al-Bireh, a city adjacent to Ramallah, setting fire to around 20 cars before withdrawing, as noted by the WAFA news agency. They also stated that the settlers fired shots into the air and at civil defence vehicles that responded to extinguish the flames.

An Associated Press reporter counted 18 burned-out cars.

In addition, the settlers set fire to a parking lot in the town of Deir Dibwan, east of Ramallah, and sprayed racist slogans on a retaining wall, WAFA reported.

Attacks by settlers on Palestinians and their property have surged since the outbreak of the Israeli war in Gaza. Over the past year, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs recorded at least 1,423 incidents of terrorist settler violence in the occupied West Bank—an average of four per day.

The Ramallah and Al-Bireh governorate experienced the highest number of attacks, with 321 reported, followed by 319 in Nablus and 298 in Hebron.

Following the events of 7 October 2023, Israel extremist National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir distributed semiautomatic rifles and other weapons to settlers and far-right Israelis, which are now being used against Palestinians.

More than 120,000 firearms have been distributed among Israeli settlers, with tens of thousands more receiving conditional approvals.

Terrorist Israeli militias

Nabil Abu Rudeineh, spokesperson for the Palestinian Authority, condemned the attack as a crime perpetrated by “terrorist settler militias.”

In a statement, the Palestinian foreign ministry denounced the “brutal attack” in the strongest terms, asserting that it reflects the ongoing crimes of settler gangs throughout the West Bank, including occupied Jerusalem, and mirrors the genocide and displacement experienced by Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

The Times of Israel reported that Israel’s police force has opened an investigation into the incident.

Approximately 700,000 Israeli colonists live in at least 250 settlements and outposts in the West Bank and occupied East Jerusalem, which are considered illegal by the UN and the vasy majority of the international community.

Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention prohibits an occupying power from transferring its own civilian population into the territory it occupies.

On 19 July 2024, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) declared that Israel’s occupation of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, is unlawful, along with the associated settlement regime, annexation and use of natural resources.

The Court ruled that Israel's legislation and measures violate the international prohibition on racial segregation and apartheid.

The ICJ mandated Israel to end its occupation, dismantle its settlements, provide full reparations to Palestinian victims and facilitate the return of displaced people.