Israeli leaders condemn riot by 100 radical settler activists who burned Palestinian home, injured 3 police officers

Israeli leaders strongly condemned an overnight riot by some 100 radical settler activists, who prevented an IDF unit from escorting a Palestinian family back to its home in the town of Jalud by blocking several roads and clashing with security forces late Monday evening.

The IDF stated that the Tubasi family “had been forced to leave their home following several incidents of nationalist crime against them. Due to the violence, the mission to return the family to their home was not completed.”

Two activists were arrested at the scene for taking part in the riot, while a third was seized while driving. Police found flares, hoods and a wooden club in the car.

The IDF added that three Border Police officers were lightly injured, and a security forces vehicle was damaged, after the rioters “blocked roads, set tires on fire, and hurled rocks toward security forces [and] also set fire to Palestinian-owned structures in the area, as well as vehicles and additional property.”

המשטרה מעדכנת כי עצרה הלילה באירועים הלילה שלושה חשודים. שניים שהועברו על ידי צה״ל (15 ו17) תושבי איזור בנימין ונחקרים בתחנת משטרה בשעה הזו. בנוסף המשטרה עצרה רכב חשוד שבו נהג (18) תושב ירושלים בחשד שהשתתף בהתפרעות. ברכב נתפסו אלה ורעלות. החשוד הועבר לחקירה. בסריקות נתפס רכב נוסף pic.twitter.com/bTkV9exe13

— Haim Goldich | חיים גולדיטש (@HGoldich) September 29, 2026

The Tubasi claimed to The Times of Israel that their house, as well as their car were torched by the rioters. The Israeli High Court had ordered authorities to remove the settler activists who had taken over three homes on the hill outside Jalud after the families had left them amid a months-long “siege” by the settlers.

According to geo-analyst Ben Tzion Macales, the homes were built at the edge of the Palestinian controlled Area B under the Oslo Accords, which had reportedly caused repeated friction with Jewish hikers who passed just below the hill in the Israeli-controlled Area C.

“The security establishment strongly condemns any harm to security personnel while carrying out their duties, as well as acts of vandalism and damage to property. Such incidents divert attention, undermine stability, and hinder the security forces’ defensive and counterterrorism activities,” the military stressed.

משפחת טובאסי מג'אלוד גורשה מביתה בסוף יולי בתום מצור עליו של כמה שבועות ומתנחלים השתלטו עליו. ב-6 בספטמבר פסק בג"ץ שעל המדינה להחזיר אותם תוך שבועיים. שבוע שעבר עודכנה המשפחה ע"י המת"ק לדבריהם שיתעכב כי המתנחלים חזרו. הלילה: כוחות צה"ל ניסו ללוות את המשפחה בחזרה לבית. מוחמד… pic.twitter.com/7ZRTALAK1M

— Nurit Yohanan (@nurityohanan) September 29, 2026

The incident was met with strong criticism by numerous senior politicians.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu criticized the “violent riots” and urged authorities to “prosecute the rioters to the fullest extent of the law.”

However, as in previous incidents of this nature, he also noted that they “do not represent the law-abiding settler community in Judea and Samaria; they greatly wrong it and interfere with our forces in carrying out their mission.”

Defense Minister Israel Katz visited the IDF Central Command in Judea and Samaria on Tuesday, noting that the rioters both “attacked security forces and set fire to Palestinian homes and property. With their own hands, they are interfering with efforts to thwart Palestinian terrorism, diverting forces from their missions, and seriously harming security efforts, the settlements, and the State of Israel.”

President Isaac Herzog called to deal with the rioters “to the fullest extent of the law,” calling their actions “a moral stain, a violation of the rule of law and of our most basic values as a people and as a state… This violence stands in profound contradiction to the values of Judaism,” Herzog said.

Gadi Eisenkot, leader of the Yashar party, condemned the rioters while accusing the government of allowing “anarchy and loss of control” and a situation where “each person does what is right in their own eyes.”

“Every Israeli who upholds the values of the Declaration of Independence, the rule of law, and the sovereignty of the government feels revulsion this morning toward this behavior—which does not represent Israel and its values,” he said.

Israeli media reported that the rioters had responded to an online campaign urging activists to rush to Jalud late Monday night. “Security forces are returning Tubasi to his home in Jalud,” an online flyer read, “Everyone is coming now.”

In addition to the large riot outside Jalud, other rioters also entered the village of Al-Mughayyir in the Binyamin area overnight, setting fire to vehicles and property while leaving graffiti messages reading “Revenge” and “You don’t dismantle a sukkah.”

This refers to the outpost built by the activists who had taken over the homes near Jalud, where they had also erected a sukkah in honor of the Jewish Sukkot holiday.

According to journalist Simcha Raz, the hill where the three homes are located had been empty for years, gaining the name of “Burning Tires Hill” due to riots local Arab carried out there.

Raz added: “Eight years ago, residents of the village paved a road to the strategic hill, and two [Arab] families moved there to live, and the number of attacks on [Jewish] hikers in the valley below increased. About half a year ago, a settlement outpost was established on the hill, and the two families abandoned it. Following a petition to the High Court of Justice, it was ruled that the families need to return, and tonight, with IDF forces' escort, they tried to do so. 100 residents of the Shilo Bloc came down there and prevented the dangerous return.”