HistoryData
general2015

Firebombing of a Palestinian home in 2015

July 31, 2015

The Duma arson attack killed three members of a Palestinian family and led to a rare terrorism conviction of an Israeli settler.

Quick Facts

Year
2015
Category
general

Key Facts

Date of attack
31 July 2015
Victims killed
3 (Ali Dawabsheh, 18 months old, and both parents)
Perpetrator convicted
Amiram Ben-Uliel, age 21 at indictment
Conviction year
2020
Sentence imposed
Life imprisonment
Charges included
3 counts murder, 2 attempted murder, 3 arson, racially motivated crime

By the Numbers

31
Date of attack
3
Victims killed
21
Perpetrator convicted
2,020
Conviction year

Location

Map of Duma, Palestinian TerritoriesMap of Duma, Palestinian TerritoriesDuma, Palestinian Territories

Cause → Event → Consequence

Cause

Israeli settlers targeted a Palestinian family in the village of Duma in what prosecutors later established was a racially motivated terrorist act. The attackers were affiliated with extremist settler networks and planned the assault with at least one other minor co-conspirator.

Event

On 31 July 2015, settlers firebombed the Dawabsheh family home in Duma. Eighteen-month-old Ali Dawabsheh was burned alive; his mother and father both succumbed to their injuries within weeks, resulting in three deaths and the destruction of the family home.

Consequence

Amiram Ben-Uliel was indicted in January 2016 and convicted in 2020 on three counts of murder, two of attempted murder, and arson as part of a terrorist act. He was sentenced to life imprisonment, marking one of the few cases in which an Israeli settler was convicted of terrorism against Palestinians.

Timeline Context

Timeline around 201520152012201320142016201720182015 Copa América — 2015 edition of the Copa América association football competition2015 FIFA Women's World Cup — 2015 edition of the FIFA Women's World CupJanuary 2015 — month of 20152015 Formula One World Championship — 66th season of Formula One motor racing2015 AFC Asian Cup — international football competition2015 World Championships in Athletics — 2015 edition of the World Championships in Athletics2015 European Games — sport competition2015 Africa Cup of Nations — football championship of Africaduma-village-arson-attack-2015