DaysofPal- A Palestinian man was killed and his brother critically wounded on Saturday evening after armed Israeli settlers opened fire on them while they were confronting an attack targeting residents’ homes in Masafer Yatta, south of Hebron in the southern occupied West Bank.
The director of Yatta Governmental Hospital, Ziad Abu Zahra, said one Palestinian was killed and another wounded by settlers’ gunfire in the Wadi al-Rakhim area of Masafer Yatta.
According to anti-settlement activist Osama Makhmara, the victim was identified as Amir Mohammad Shannaran, 28, who was shot at close range by armed settlers. His brother, Khaled Mohammad Shannaran, sustained serious injuries in the attack.
Makhmara said settlers from the nearby Susiya settlement had released their livestock near the homes of the Shannaran family in Wadi al-Rakhim, allowing the animals to graze around residents’ houses and agricultural lands.
Local residents attempted to drive the settlers’ cattle away from their homes before armed settlers intervened and opened fire randomly at them, hitting the two brothers, he said.
The injured men were transported to Yatta Governmental Hospital, where Amir Shannaran was pronounced dead after sustaining a critical gunshot wound to the neck. His brother Khaled suffered severe injuries to the abdomen and remains in serious condition.
Amir Shannaran was the father of two young daughters, aged three and two.
Local sources said the attack began when a group of heavily armed settlers directed their livestock toward Palestinian homes in Wadi al-Rakhim in an apparent attempt to destroy crops and grazing lands. The assault later escalated into direct gunfire at residents who tried to defend their property.
The killing comes amid a broader pattern of systematic violations against Palestinian communities in Masafer Yatta, where residents face frequent settler attacks aimed at forcing them from their land.
In early 2026, settlers uprooted more than 500 olive and almond trees in the same area and spray-painted racist graffiti calling for the expulsion of Palestinian residents.
Residents say settler assaults often occur under the protection of Israeli forces, who, in many cases, detain Palestinians who attempt to defend themselves rather than intervening to stop the attackers.
Rights groups have also reported a sharp rise in settler violence since October 2023. Organizations, including B’Tselem say the increase in so-called “pastoral settler” attacks is part of efforts to displace small Palestinian communities across Masafer Yatta.
According to the Palestinian Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission, Israeli forces and settlers carried out 1,965 attacks across the West Bank in February alone. Of these, 421 incidents occurred in Hebron governorate, including 138 attacks carried out by settlers targeting Palestinian villages and Bedouin communities.
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