The Resilience of Burqa
How a Palestinian village has been faring under constant Israeli settler attacks.
Jerusalem24 –Burqa is a Palestinian village of around 4000 people northwest of the Palestinian city of Nablus. It is situated near the settlement of Homesh, which was evacuated in 2005.
The past few days Burqa has been the site of ongoing demonstrations and clashes between its residents on one side and Israeli forces and settlers on the other.
The area is no stranger to settler violence, as only a month ago settlers attacked five Palestinians who were harvesting olives nearby. One settler opened fire towards the Palestinians while others threw stones and chased them with sticks.
Three Palestinians were injured in the incident, one had injuries that were described as being critical.
The Israeli newspaper, Ha’aretz reported that the settlers behind the attack were members of a religious school built inside the evacuated settlement outpost of Homesh.
The situation escalated when a settler was killed and two others were injured just outside the outpost, located West of Nablus and near the village of Burqa.
After the attack, Israeli settler began organizing and gathering near the outpost and marched on to the village of Burqa. The settlers attempted to storm the village of Burqa in the occupied West Bank under the cover of the night, while Israeli forces used tear gas and rubber-coated steel bullets against the Palestinians.
The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) told the WAFA news Agency that 42 Palestinians, including a journalist were wounded by rubber coated steel bullets and another 83 suffocated from tear gas fired by the Israeli army.
The PRCS added that a girl was treated for shock after a group of Israeli settlers attacked her family’s home on the outskirts of the village.
The recent settler attacks against the village have inspired scores of Palestinians in different towns and refugee camps to march in support of Burqa.
At the entrance to the Jalazun refugee camp, clashes erupted after the Israeli military suppressed a demonstration. Mahmoud Mubarak, head of the Popular Committee in the camp, told WAFA that “this march comes within the framework of supporting our people in the villages that are exposed to continuous settler attacks with support and protection of the occupation forces.”
Another protest took place in Qalqilya, where Palestinians also marched in support of the village of Burqa and its resilience against the settlers who have been trying to storm it for the past few nights.
In this episode, Imad Seif, a resident of Burqa, tells us what he witnessed first hand in the attacks against his village.
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