What an Israeli settler pogrom feels like
A young Palestinian man looks through the broken window of his house after an attack by Israeli settlers the previous night in the village of At-Tuwani, Masafer Yatta, southern occupied West Bank, 19 July 2026
Mohammad Hesham Huraini writes in +972 on 27 July 2026:
I knew they were here before I saw them. It was just after midnight on July 18, and around 40 masked Israeli settlers from the notoriously violent illegal outpost of Havat Ma’on were invading my village of At-Tuwani in the South Hebron Hills — armed with sticks, stones, and gasoline.
I heard shouting, followed by the unmistakable sound of stones smashing through glass. Then I felt the heat from the fire they had ignited.
The settlers first descended on Al-Taqwa Mosque. They shattered its windows, poured gasoline on the ground, and set the entrance on fire. They spray painted Stars of David across the walls, and slogans in Hebrew including “Revenge.”
Revenge for what exactly? They blamed us for starting a wildfire that had engulfed the settlement of Havat Gilad earlier that day. Israeli authorities later announced that this had likely been started accidentally by an unextinguished cigarette.
But this false pretext was only an excuse for the settlers to unleash their wrath on Palestinians. They knew they would face no punishment for their crimes — and that if we tried to defend ourselves, the Israeli army would spring to the settlers’ defense, arresting or even shooting us without a moment’s hesitation.
After attacking the mosque, they split into several groups and moved from house to house. They threw more stones, smashed more windows, and hurled gasoline into homes before setting them ablaze.