Sinjil’s Grassroots Patrols Respond to Rising Settler Violence

Since late June 2024, roughly 15 volunteers from the West Bank town of Sinjil have organized nightly watch patrols on a hilltop overlooking the village. Using a searchlight, WhatsApp alerts and metal-barred fences, the volunteers confront settlers who approach homes and call on neighbors through group messages. The effort intensified after the October 2023 Gaza war, when settlers’ attacks reportedly killed two people, displaced more than 100 Bedouins and forced 20 families from their homes. Municipal head Moataz Tawafsha says the town now feels “like a collective prison,” prompting the municipality to assume primary responsibility for protection.

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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right coalition has approved hundreds of new settlements and outposts across the occupied West Bank. International bodies generally deem all settlement activity illegal under international law, a view Israel disputes. The six outposts surrounding Sinjil are described by residents as staging grounds for the attacks, while the Yesha Council, which represents settlers, has not commented on the violence.

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The Israeli military states that troops are deployed to disperse confrontations but places responsibility for civilian settler actions with the Israeli police. The police declined to comment when approached for a statement. The military also did not immediately respond to allegations that it dismantled a volunteer-built watch tent after settlers fired live rounds at it. The Yesha Council did not reply to requests for comment on the incidents in Sinjil.

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Volunteers and municipal officials argue that the Israeli security forces are either slow to respond or actively protect settlers. Fadi Alwan, a volunteer, says the army “protects them and doesn’t stop them” and that calls to the army and police are “useless.” Residents recount beatings, Molotov-cocktail attacks and live-fire incidents, underscoring their reliance on self-organized defense measures.

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• “We have been left on our own. ?You are facing settlers supported by their government,” — Fadi Alwan, volunteer

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• “The army protects them and doesn't stop them. We call the army. We call the police. It's useless,” — Fadi Alwan

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• “If they get close to the houses, we go confront them, we send (messages out) on the WhatsApp groups,” — Fadi Alwan

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• “We really feel as if we are living in a collective prison,” — Moataz Tawafsha, head of Sinjil municipality

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• “God bless them, they really helped us,” — Abed Foqahaa, resident (after volunteers rescued his wheelchair-using father)

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