Israeli settlers besiege two Palestinian families in West Bank village of Qusra

Since Sunday afternoon, a group of Israeli settlers and soldiers has surrounded the home of Yousef Hassan in the West Bank village of Qusra, trapping him, his wife and their two young daughters inside. The siege began just metres from where 28-year-old Amir Moatasem Odeh was killed by a settler in March, when another attacker also stabbed his father. No one has been arrested over that killing.

Hassan said settlers throw stones and shout obscenities outside the house every night, creating what he described as a state of terror. His mother, brother, sister and three neighbours have also been trapped, with power and water to their homes cut off. Settlers used similar methods in July in the nearby village of Jalud, driving out the al Tubasi family after a months-long siege.

On Monday, Hassan's two-year-old daughter developed vomiting and a high fever, but settlers prevented an ambulance from reaching the house. She and her mother were only evacuated on Tuesday. The family is now short of food, relying on water and juice left by the ambulance crew.

On Wednesday morning, the Israeli military's regional commander, Gen Avi Bluth, visited the families and promised to end the siege. Hassan confirmed the visit, saying he felt for the first time that the army was taking the situation seriously, though no tangible change had followed — settlers remained outside the home and the family still could not leave. Soldiers removed the settlers' tent but left other belongings behind.

An Israeli military spokesperson said commanders were "gravely concerned" and that soldiers found to have supported the settlers would face discipline, but gave no timeline for lifting the siege. On Wednesday evening, IDF chief of staff Eyal Zamir met senior commanders and ordered an infantry reservist battalion recalled from leave to reinforce troops in the area.

Since 2020, Israeli civilians and soldiers have killed more than 1,100 Palestinians in the West Bank, with only one indictment brought over those deaths. Rights group B'Tselem said Israel has forcibly displaced 64 Palestinian communities over the past three years, with over 4,800 people driven out of 15 additional communities. B'Tselem's executive director, Yuli Novak, said the events in Qusra reflect a broader, military-backed campaign by settler militias to seize land and expel Palestinian residents.

Dozens of figures from Israel's security, political and cultural establishment have threatened legal action against their government over its failure to confront settler violence. The military has declared the area a closed military zone, barring journalists from the site, though settlers have not been removed.