Residents of the Palestinian town of Sinjil in the occupied West Bank say they have been forced to organise volunteer patrols and night watches to defend their community against growing attacks by Israeli settlers.
Groups of local volunteers gather on hilltops overlooking the town, using searchlights and community WhatsApp groups to monitor nearby valleys and alert residents to any signs of approaching settlers.
“We have been left on our own. You are facing settlers supported by their government,” said volunteer Fadi Alwan.
“We have nobody. So we are forced to stay here and protect this town.”
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Volunteers say authorities have failed to provide protection
Residents accuse Israeli security forces of failing to protect Palestinians from settler violence.
According to Alwan, calls to Israeli police or the military either receive delayed responses or result in forces arriving to assist settlers rather than local residents.
“The army protects them and doesn’t stop them. We call the army. We call the police. It’s useless,” he said.
Israel’s military said troops are deployed to disperse confrontations when necessary but that responsibility for Israeli civilians in the West Bank lies with the Israeli police.
Police did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Settlements and outposts surround Sinjil
Sinjil lies on the main road linking the Palestinian cities of Ramallah and Nablus and is surrounded by several Israeli settlements and smaller settler outposts.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government has approved hundreds of new settlements and outposts across the occupied West Bank.
Palestinians say many attacks originate from nearby outposts, while Israeli officials argue settlements are necessary for security and oppose the creation of a Palestinian state based on the West Bank.
Most countries consider Israeli settlements in occupied territory illegal under international law, a position Israel disputes.
Searchlights and WhatsApp groups form local defence network
Residents say their defence strategy relies on rapid communication.
Volunteers patrol roads around the town while others remain on nearby hills with searchlights. If settlers approach homes or farmland, alerts are immediately circulated through local WhatsApp groups to mobilise residents.
Alwan said he was recently assaulted by a settler carrying a spiked club while harvesting wheat.
He also alleged that settlers fired live ammunition at a volunteer watch tent last year before Israeli troops dismantled it the following day.
Israel’s military did not immediately comment on that allegation.
Town says closures have deepened isolation
Municipal officials say Israeli military restrictions have made Sinjil increasingly isolated.
According to Mayor Moataz Tawafsha, four of the town’s five entrances have been closed and barriers have cut residents off from roughly 2,000 acres of privately owned land.
“We really feel as if we are living in a collective prison,” Tawafsha said.
“As a result, the municipality has taken primary responsibility for providing protection.”
He said settler attacks since October 2023 have killed two people, displaced more than 100 Bedouin residents living on town land and forced around 20 additional families to leave homes within the town.
Residents describe repeated attacks
Local resident Abed Foqahaa said he reinforced his home with metal bars and fencing after settlers allegedly threw a Molotov cocktail through a window while his family was inside about two years ago.
“The fire broke out and we couldn’t control it,” he said.
After sending an alert through the town’s WhatsApp group, volunteers arrived to help rescue his wheelchair-bound father despite initially being delayed by Israeli troops, he said.
“God bless them, they really helped us.”
Future outlook
With settler violence remaining a major source of tension across the occupied West Bank, communities like Sinjil are increasingly relying on self-organised patrols and local communication networks for protection. Whether security conditions improve will depend on developments on the ground, Israeli enforcement against settler violence and broader political efforts to address the long-running conflict.
With information from Reuters.
