Palestinians inspect the aftermath of the fire at the "Hajjah Hamidah" mosque in the town of Deir Istiya, northwest of Salfit in the West Bank, Nov. 13, 2025. Israeli settlers set fire to parts of a mosque northwest of Salfit in the West Bank on Thursday and wrote anti-Islam slogans on its walls, the Palestinian Liberation Organization's Commission Against the Wall and Settlements said in a brief statement. (Photo by Nidal Eshtayeh/Xinhua)
RAMALLAH, Nov. 13 (Xinhua) -- Israeli settlers set fire to parts of a mosque northwest of Salfit in the West Bank on Thursday and wrote anti-Islam slogans on its walls, the Palestinian Liberation Organization's Commission Against the Wall and Settlements said in a brief statement.
The settlers poured flammable material at the mosque's entrance, but residents intervened and prevented the fire from spreading to the entire building, the statement said. It added that the attackers also wrote slogans "hostile" to Arabs and Muslims on the mosque's walls.
Israeli authorities have not commented on the incident.
The Palestinian Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs condemned the attack, calling it a "heinous crime."
In a statement, the ministry said the act violated international laws and conventions protecting freedom of worship and the establishment of places of worship. It urged the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and Arab and Islamic states to take action to "end these attacks, which defy description."
The incidents come amid a recent increase in settler violence during the olive harvest, when Palestinians tend to their farmland near towns and villages.
Last week, the United Nations reported the escalation of violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, with October recording the highest number of attacks in nearly two decades.
More than 700,000 Israeli settlers live in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Israel occupied the West Bank in 1967 and established settlements there, which are considered illegal under international law. ■
A Palestinian inspects the aftermath of the fire at the "Hajjah Hamidah" mosque in the town of Deir Istiya, northwest of Salfit in the West Bank, Nov. 13, 2025. Israeli settlers set fire to parts of a mosque northwest of Salfit in the West Bank on Thursday and wrote anti-Islam slogans on its walls, the Palestinian Liberation Organization's Commission Against the Wall and Settlements said in a brief statement. (Photo by Nidal Eshtayeh/Xinhua)
A member of Israeli forces guards the "Hajjah Hamidah" mosque in the town of Deir Istiya, northwest of Salfit in the West Bank, Nov. 13, 2025. Israeli settlers set fire to parts of a mosque northwest of Salfit in the West Bank on Thursday and wrote anti-Islam slogans on its walls, the Palestinian Liberation Organization's Commission Against the Wall and Settlements said in a brief statement. (Photo by Nidal Eshtayeh/Xinhua)
A Palestinian inspects the aftermath of the fire at the "Hajjah Hamidah" mosque in the town of Deir Istiya, northwest of Salfit in the West Bank, Nov. 13, 2025. Israeli settlers set fire to parts of a mosque northwest of Salfit in the West Bank on Thursday and wrote anti-Islam slogans on its walls, the Palestinian Liberation Organization's Commission Against the Wall and Settlements said in a brief statement. (Photo by Nidal Eshtayeh/Xinhua)
A Palestinian inspects the aftermath of the fire at the "Hajjah Hamidah" mosque in the town of Deir Istiya, northwest of Salfit in the West Bank, Nov. 13, 2025. Israeli settlers set fire to parts of a mosque northwest of Salfit in the West Bank on Thursday and wrote anti-Islam slogans on its walls, the Palestinian Liberation Organization's Commission Against the Wall and Settlements said in a brief statement. (Photo by Nidal Eshtayeh/Xinhua)
