Two Israeli civilians were violently attacked by a Palestinian mob after accidentally entering the Arab village of Deir Ballut in western Samaria on Tuesday night, according to initial reports in Hebrew media.
The Hatzalah Judea and Samaria rescue group said its medics treated the victims, who were hurt but did not lose consciousness. The men sustained light to moderate wounds, first responders said.
Israel’s Kan News public broadcaster cited security sources as saying that a large military force was deployed to rescue the men. Palestinian Authority police reportedly also responded to the incident in Samaria.
According to the Israeli Defense Ministry’s Civil Administration, an investigation was launched “to verify their identity and reasons for entering the village.”
Local media reported that the civilians, who were said to be residents of Ramla in central Israel, made a wrong turn while on their way to the Jewish community of Peduel, less than a mile east of Deir Ballut.
Some Palestinian reports, however, claimed that the Israelis willingly entered the Arab town following a financial dispute with villagers.
The IDF over the past year rescued more than 200 people—civilians and soldiers—from territories under the control of the Palestinian Authority and other unsafe areas in Judea and Samaria, Brig. Gen. Hisham Ibrahim, head of the Civil Administration, revealed on Oct. 9.
“Since October 7, the officers of the unit rescued more than 200 Israelis, including soldiers, from [P.A.-controlled] Area A and other dangerous places in the area. Every single one of these incidents had the potential to set the area on fire and, God forbid, cause bodily harm,” he added.
Terrorism has been on the rise across Judea, Samaria and the Jordan Valley since Hamas launched its cross-border terrorist assault on the northwestern Negev on Oct. 7, 2023, despite security forces carrying out counter-terror operations in the territories over the past months.
Areas A, B, and C are three administrative zones in Judea and Samaria established with the Oslo Accords. Area A is under P.A. civil and security control. Area B is governed by the Palestinians but has joint Israeli-P.A. security. Area C, roughly 60% of the territory, is under full Israeli control.
Under Israeli law, it is illegal for Jews to enter Area A, and large red signs warning Israelis not to enter these areas have dotted the entrances to Palestinian Authority-controlled villages across Judea and Samaria.
In June, a female IDF soldier with security clearance was arrested after illegally visiting Ramallah in Samaria to visit her Palestinian secret lover.
During questioning by the IDF Military Police officers, the soldier initially claimed to have gone to Ramallah to purchase drugs before admitting to having a relationship with a resident.
That same month, an Israeli man was shot and killed after entering the P.A.-controlled city of Qalqilya in western Samaria. He was identified as Amnon Muchtar, 66, from Petach Tikvah in central Israel. The father of five owned a vegetable store and traveled to Qalqilya to buy produce.
