Settlers surround Palestinian family’s West Bank home in ongoing day-long siege
Nurit Yohanan is The Times of Israel's Palestinian and Arab world correspondent
Settlers have been surrounding the home of a Palestinian family on the outskirts of the village of Qusra, south of Nablus, preventing the family from entering or leaving since Sunday, residents said.
Youssef Hassan, the homeowner, who lives there with his wife and their two young daughters, aged two and four, told The Times of Israel by phone on Monday that settlers erected a makeshift structure in front of the entrance to his home a day earlier and have since prevented anyone from entering or leaving, leaving him trapped inside. He said they also cut the electricity lines.
Video footage shows settlers gathered in the structure near the house. In another clip, they can be seen attempting to open one of the gates to the yard.
Hassan said he has lived in the house for five years. Settlers began coming to the property and harassing the family around seven months ago, he said, but the situation escalated over the past two days when they blocked the access routes to the home.
He added that he is trying to find a way to get his wife and daughters out of the house because of the danger he said the settlers pose to them.
Soldiers were filmed Sunday arriving at the structure erected by the settlers and praying with them. According to Hassan, they later left without removing the settlers.
מתנחלים צרים כבר יממה על בית משפחה פלסטינית שמתגוררת בקצה הכפר קוסרה דרומית לשכם ומונעים מבני הבית לצאת או להיכנס. יוסוף חסאן, בעל הבית שגר עם אשתו ושתי בנותיו הקטנות – בנות שנתיים וארבע, סיפר לי בטלפון כי מאז אתמול מתנחלים הקימו סוכה מול הכניסה לביתו –> pic.twitter.com/e4jyz6KYaF
— Nurit Yohanan (@nurityohanan) August 10, 2026
The IDF did not respond to a request for comment.
Doron Meinert, of the group “Looking the Occupation in the Eye,” who was at the scene Monday morning, said in a statement that the family was “trapped in their home, with a violent and armed settler militia threatening them, with the aim of pressuring them to abandon the house.”
Last month, settlers surrounded a home in the nearby village of Jalud for more than two weeks, after which the family living there fled and settlers took over the property. Settlers remain in the Jalud home to this day, and its owners have been unable to return.
More than 2,200 Palestinians have been displaced this year due to settler violence or access restrictions, while hundreds more have been displaced due to home demolitions by Israeli authorities, Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for the United Nations secretary-general, citing the UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), said in June.
Settler violence has mounted in recent years, with near-daily, sometimes deadly attacks taking place throughout the West Bank, but few suspects arrested and charged. Critics accuse the government of condoning or even encouraging the attacks.
The number of serious incidents of “nationalistic crime” committed by extremist Jewish settlers in the West Bank surged by 63 percent during the first half of this year compared to the same period last year, from 405 attacks to 660 attacks in the corresponding periods, the Kan public broadcaster reported Monday, citing security establishment figures.
Such offenses are classified by Israeli security bodies as terrorism.
Palestinian casualties from settler violence climbed sharply as well, with 140 Palestinians wounded and six killed during the first half of the year, compared with 82 wounded and none killed during the same period last year.
Stav Levaton contributed to this report.
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Settlers have surrounded the home of a Palestinian family in Qusra, south of Nablus, since Sunday, preventing them from entering or leaving. Youssef Hassan, the homeowner, reported that settlers erected a makeshift structure, cut electricity, and blocked access to his home where he lives with his wife and two young daughters. Soldiers were filmed praying with the settlers before leaving without removing them. Doron Meinert of "Looking the Occupation in the Eye" stated the family is "trapped in their home, with a violent and armed settler militia threatening them." This incident follows a similar event last month in Jalud, where settlers took over a home after the family fled. The UN reports over 2,200 Palestinians displaced this year due to settler violence or access restrictions, with a 63% surge in "nationalistic crime" incidents by settlers in the first half of the year compared to last year.
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