‘I thought I was going to die’: activists injured in settler violence

Settler extremists attacked a Bedouin village in the West Bank last week, severely injuring at least four people, including a young American activist left with a fractured skull.

“I thought I was going to die,” said Jacob, 21, told The Jewish Independent from hospital where he was also examined for severe bruising and lacerations to his leg.  

The recent migrant to Israel, who has asked his family name be suppressed, was in the Bedouin village of Mukhmas as part of a team of international and Israeli activists providing a "protective presence" for Palestinian and Bedouin communities that have been victims of repeated settler violence.

Security camera footage appears to show approximately 20 to 30 masked assailants participating in the attack , which also left a French national and members of the local Bedouin community injured.

Jacob said he was “terrified” when masked attackers chased him through the village while homes and vehicles were being set alight. When he turned back to help another activist, his attackers caught up with him and he was beaten with iron rods for several minutes. 

“I was lying in the field and I saw everything burning… [The settlers] ran away after they burnt everything and beat us to their heart’s content”, said Jacob.

The young activist said IDF respondents were unsympathetic when they arrived at the scene.  Jacob said he was shaken aggressively by a medic who insisted his injuries did not warrant an ambulance. After protesting, Jacob said the unit commander threatened to “beat [him] up” if he ever returned to Mukhmas.