A Palestinian-owned house and vehicle in the village of Khirbet Abu Falah in the West Bank were set on fire likely as a result of an electrical failure inside the house, Israel Police announced on Saturday, after reports claimed the incident was caused by an arson attack by Jewish rioters.
The IDF and Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) have opened an investigation into the incident, and an investigator from Israel Fire and Rescue said that it was most likely caused by an electrical failure. Despite this, Army Radio quoted Palestinians as saying that Jewish rioters had arrived at the scene wearing masks.
No suspects were found in the area by the time Israeli forces arrived. Police also announced that no remains of Molotov cocktails and/or flammable materials were found at the scene.
Two Palestinian adults, along with their four children, were inside their home during the incident. All six suffered from smoke inhalation and needed to be evacuated for medical treatment.
Several Palestinians in the area were evacuated for medical treatment as well, also due to smoke inhalation.
Saturday clashes in West Bank
Also on Saturday, violent clashes broke out between Jews and Palestinians in the village of Beita near Nablus, the radio news station said.
Four Palestinians – three Red Crescent workers and a journalist – were wounded in the incident as a result of stone-throwing, according to the same news report.
In a separate incident that same day, not far from the village of Burin near Nablus, Jews threw stones at left-wing activists on the outskirts of the village, wounding four people.
The UN said on Friday that settlers carried out at least 264 attacks against Palestinians in the West Bank during October, marking the biggest monthly total since UN officials began tracking such incidents in 2006.
In a statement warning against the rise in violence, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said these attacks, which result in casualties and property damage, amount to an average of eight incidents per day.
“Since 2006, OCHA has documented over 9,600 such attacks. About 1,500 of them took place just this year, roughly 15% of the total,” the UN body said in a statement.