Four Palestinians and one Israeli killed in West Bank shooting

The Palestinian foreign ministry said it “condemns in the strongest terms the massacre” in Tal.

It said “the escalation of settler terrorism is a direct consequence of the protection, political backing, and complete impunity granted by the Israeli government and occupation forces”.

“Official Israeli incitement continues to fuel and encourage these crimes, creating an environment in which settler violence flourishes without accountability,” it added.

An AFP reporter at the site, south-west of Nablus, said roadblocks had been set up and troops were searching for additional suspects.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to act “with full force against the terrorists and those who orchestrate and sponsor them”.

He called an emergency meeting with security officials, and reinforcements have been sent to the area, close to the settlement of Havat Gilad.

There has been a surge in attacks by settlers on Palestinians and their property in the West Bank since the start of the Gaza war, which was triggered by the Hamas-led attack on Israel on 7 October 2023.

In that period, 1,114 Palestinians have been killed there, the vast majority by the IDF, the UN says. It says at least 35 of the deaths have involved attacks by settlers.

The UN says 41 Israelis, including civilians and security personnel, have been killed in Palestinian attacks or during Israeli military operations in the West Bank since the start of the Gaza war.

Israel has built about 160 settlements housing 700,000 Jews since it occupied the West Bank and East Jerusalem – land Palestinians want, along with Gaza, for a hoped-for future state – during the 1967 Middle East war. An estimated 3.3 million Palestinians live alongside them. The settlements are illegal under international law.