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Tag: near Bethlehem

Israeli occupier opens fire at Palestinian, Israeli peace activists in southern West Bank
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Palestinians and foreign activists gather to protest in support of their land, which they say is under threat of being seized by Israelis, and to express their determination not to leave their properties in Beit Sahour, Hebron Governorate, West Bank, on August 14, 2026. [Mamoun Wazwaz – Anadolu Agency]
An armed Israeli occupier opened fire Friday at Palestinian and Israeli peace activists during a joint event near Beit Sahour in the southern occupied West Bank, with no injuries reported, an Israeli group said, Anadolu reports.
Combatants for Peace, a left-wing Israeli organization, said in a statement that the shooting took place during a joint activity organized by its activists and Palestinian landowners on the outskirts of Beit Sahour, near Bethlehem.
“Heavily armed settlers opened fire in our direction to force us to leave. The army quickly intervened, not to stop the settlers, but to push our group of activists and journalists out of the area, while the settlers were allowed to stay,” the statement said.
No injuries were reported.
The group said the event was attended by representatives of the Beit Sahour municipality, along with Bishop William Shomali, a senior official of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem.
Combatants for Peace published videos it said documented the incident, including one showing an occupier firing into the air before pointing his weapon toward the participants, while gunfire could be heard in another clip.
READ: Palestinian Christian-majority Taybeh in occupied West Bank caught between Israeli army restrictions, occupier attacks
The group said Israeli army forces arrived at the scene around 30 minutes after the shooting began, and the activity ended without injuries.
“Activists went to Beit Sahour to provide a protective presence to the local residents. While we were there, heavily armed settlers fired shots in our direction,” the group said.
It said Palestinians, Israelis and journalists were among the participants, calling for an immediate investigation into the incident.
“Despite the threats, we will continue to show up, ensure Palestinians safe access to their land, and support their resilience through collective action,” the group said.
The event was held to protest attempts to displace Palestinians from their land and rising settler attacks in the West Bank.
Combatants for Peace includes Palestinian and Israeli activists who call for an end to the occupation and achieving peace between the two peoples.
On Wednesday, the UN warned that occupier violence in the West Bank had reached unprecedented levels, saying it had documented more than 1,430 attacks since the start of 2026 targeting around 260 Palestinian communities.
The attacks, alongside demolitions and evictions, displaced 3,800 Palestinians, about half of them children, according to the UN.
READ: Palestinians, foreign and Israeli activists protest in West Bank town, head to besieged homes by Israeli occupiers
This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
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Tag: near Bethlehem

Israeli occupier opens fire at Palestinian, Israeli peace activists in southern West Bank