Bruqin to Maghayer Al Dir: Settlers Chase Palestinians with Fire and Displacement

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In the West Bank, no sooner is one town’s fire extinguished than another ignites. From Bruqin to Maghayer Al Dir, the names may differ, but the pain remains the same.

Bruqin Suffocates
On Thursday evening, it wasn’t just smoke that hung over the town of Bruqin, west of Salfit in the West Bank, but the stench of destruction left behind by settlers under the protection of the military.

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According to the Palestinian news agency WAFA, settlers attacked the town, setting fire to homes and vehicles on its outskirts.

The Palestinian Red Crescent reported that its crews treated eight people for burns caused by the fires, all of whom were treated on-site.

Eyewitnesses said a group of settlers, accompanied by Israeli forces, set fire to about five houses and five vehicles, and pelted others with stones, sparking widespread panic—particularly among women and children. Mosques broadcasted urgent calls for help to extinguish the fires.

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Later, the Israeli forces re-entered the town with dozens of military vehicles, sealed off internal roads, raided several homes, and arrested a child, Ayman Omar Sanad.

This incursion came only hours after the forces had withdrawn at midday, following nine days of escalation that included the killing of young Nael Samara—whose body remains withheld—along with numerous arrests and widespread destruction of homes and infrastructure.

The military also took measurements of Samara’s house, indicating plans to demolish it.

Mughayyir al-Deir Empties Out
Dozens of kilometers away, in Maghayer Al Dir east of Ramallah, a slow and silent exodus is unfolding.

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As settler attacks intensified, the residents of this Bedouin community began packing up to leave on Thursday, according to accounts given to Agence France-Presse.

“We’ve decided to leave because we feel powerless against settler violence,” said resident Yousef Melihat.

From nearby hills, settlers observed from a newly established outpost just 60 meters from the village homes.

“What’s happening now is incredibly sad,” said Israeli peace activist Itamar Greenberg. “On Sunday, a settler told me the Bedouins would be gone within a month—but it happened much sooner.”

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Illegal Settlements
All Israeli settlements in the West Bank are considered illegal under international law.

Israel has occupied the territory since 1967, where around three million Palestinians live alongside roughly half a million Israeli settlers.

The Israeli army told AFP that it is “reviewing” the legality of the new outpost in Maghayer Al Dir.

Condemnation
Meanwhile, the Palestinian Authority’s Commission against the Wall and Settlements condemned the forced displacement, calling it the result of “settler militia terrorism.”

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In a statement, the body said 29 other Bedouin communities had suffered a similar fate.

Maghayer Al Dir was one of the last remaining inhabited clusters after the recent displacement of other communities.

Its 124 residents are now being relocated to nearby areas. Some will move to the Christian village of Taybeh, about 10 kilometers away, while others head to Ramallah.

Returning seems unlikely, as families took all they could—furniture, irrigation pipes, and bundles of straw.

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