The Huwara rampage was described as the worst Israeli settler attack in the northern West Bank in decades, killing one Palestinian and injuring 100.
Key Facts
- Palestinians killed
- 1
- Palestinians injured
- 100
- Critically injured
- 4
- Settlers involved
- Hundreds
- Israeli soldiers intervened
- No
- Joint declaration signed
- Aqaba, Jordan — same day
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
On 26 February 2023, two Israeli civilians were killed by an unidentified attacker in the northern West Bank near Huwara. This deadly attack prompted hundreds of Israeli settlers to launch a retaliatory rampage against Palestinian villages in the area the same night.
Hundreds of Israeli settlers stormed Huwara and surrounding Palestinian villages in a violent late-night rampage, setting buildings ablaze. Israeli soldiers present in the area did not intervene. The attack killed one Palestinian civilian and injured 100 others, four critically, and was characterized by an Israeli military commander as a pogrom.
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich publicly called for Huwara to be 'wiped out' by the Israeli army. Widespread condemnation from the United States, European Union, and Arab states pressured Smotrich to retract the statement. The same day, Israeli and Palestinian officials signed a joint declaration in Aqaba, Jordan aimed at reducing escalating violence.
Political Outcome
One Palestinian killed, 100 injured; international condemnation prompted Smotrich to retract his call for Huwara's destruction; joint Israeli-Palestinian de-escalation declaration signed in Aqaba.