Inside a coordinated, multi-village settler-soldier pogrom in Masafer Yatta
The blood-soaked jacket of Mohammad Abu Sabha who was attacked near his home by settlers in Al-Fakheit, Masafer Yatta, occupied West Bank, 27 January 2026
Basel Adra reports in +972 on 30 January 2026:
On the evening of January 27, Israeli settlers launched one of the most devastating pogroms on the Palestinian communities of Masafer Yatta in recent memory, attacking three villages simultaneously with what appeared to be an unprecedented level of coordination with the Israeli army.
After receiving distress messages via WhatsApp from residents of Al-Fakheit, Al-Tuban, and Al-Halawa, reporting that settlers were moving from one village to another, stealing sheep, attacking families, and setting fires, I headed toward the area with a group of around 20 Palestinian, Israeli, and international activists. At one point, a settler vehicle blocked our path, delaying volunteer firefighters from the nearby village of At-Tuwani who were attempting to reach the scene with a small water tank mounted on a four-wheel-drive vehicle for several crucial minutes.
When we finally reached Al-Tuban, we went to assist 42-year-old Samir Hamamda and his family, who had been living in a shed since Israeli forces demolished their home in November. Settlers had approached the structure shortly before our arrival; unable to break through the tightly locked door, they gathered wood and straw against the entrance and set it alight before leaving. We managed to extinguish the flames, but the thick smoke caused one of the children to wheeze from inhalation.
As we looked around, we saw fires burning in the neighboring villages as well, and nothing but settler vehicles in the surrounding roads. It was then that the scale of the attack became clear.
In Al-Tuban, residents told us that in nearby Al-Fakheit, 49-year-old Mohammad Abu Sabha had been injured and was in urgent need of medical assistance. We went directly to his home, where we found him lying on the ground, bleeding, vomiting, and unconscious, surrounded by family members. According to his relatives, Mohammad had been preparing to rush to the aid of residents of Al-Halawa who had already come under attack, when settlers ambushed and assaulted him near his house.
Footage from a surveillance camera installed on the Abu Sabha family home shows a group of masked settlers armed with clubs attacking Mohammad as he stood outside. After he fell to the ground, the settlers turned on his family, striking his 16-year-old daughter, Naghm, on the hand before she managed to escape inside with her younger siblings.
Mohammad’s elderly mother, Duha, was unable to reach the house in time. Settlers struck her on the head, broke her arm, and fractured one of her ribs. They then shattered the window of the room where the family had taken shelter, sprayed tear gas inside, and smashed the glass of the family’s vehicle before leaving the scene.