July 24 - A violent incident in the occupied West Bank left five people dead on Friday, with Israeli and Palestinian health officials reporting four Palestinian fatalities and one Israeli fatality. The Israeli military said it dispatched forces to the area southwest of the Palestinian city of Nablus following reports that Israeli civilians who were hiking had been attacked.
According to the military's account, a Palestinian had seized a weapon from local security personnel and opened fire on the Israeli civilians. In response, troops mobilized to the scene, established roadblocks and pursued those suspected of carrying out the attack. The military also ordered temporary closures on the city of Nablus and on the Tal area while operations were underway.
Palestinian officials provided a different narrative of events. They said that residents from the West Bank town of Tal were assaulted by Israeli civilians. In that account, four Palestinians were shot dead and four others were wounded amid confrontations that involved both Israeli civilians and Israeli soldiers.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened an emergency meeting to consider the government's response to the incident, the prime minister's office said in a statement.
Essam Saifi, a local leader in the Palestinian Fatah party from Tal, described a sequence of clashes in a phone call. He said that roughly 25 to 30 Jewish settlers initially attacked the eastern part of Tal and attempted to force entry into two homes. Saifi said residents came out to confront the settlers, and that the settlers then opened fire.
Saifi added that about half an hour later the same group returned and targeted the western part of the town, striking a minor with a weapon. He said the situation descended into chaos after that, and that the Israeli military arrived and began shooting alongside the settlers, contributing to further casualties and injuries.
Officials on both sides reported multiple wounded. The Israeli military said troops established roadblocks as they pursued assailants, and imposed temporary restrictions on movement into and out of affected areas as operations continued.
Context and immediate response
Local health authorities tallied four Palestinian dead and one Israeli dead. Authorities on both sides reported wounded civilians. Security forces were active on roads southwest of Nablus and in the Tal area, and local closures were put in place while searches and security measures were conducted.
The differing accounts from Israeli military officials and Palestinian representatives underscore the contested narratives surrounding the episode, while the imposition of roadblocks and the temporary closure of Nablus and Tal reflect the immediate security measures taken following the violence.