US, EU officials condemn Israeli settler violence, demand accountability

US Special Representative to the Palestinian Authority Hady Amr visited the town of Huwara on Tuesday and surveyed the damage caused by rampaging Israeli settlers Sunday evening.
2 min read
Jerusalem
28 February, 2023
US Special Representative for Palestinian Affairs Hady Amr (C) speaks to residents as he inspects damaged Palestinian property during a visit to Hawara town in the occupied West Bank, on February 28, 2023. [Getty]

On Tuesday, the EU condemned the killing of two Israelis near Hawara on Sunday and the killing of an American-Israeli citizen on Monday, naming them "terror attacks." 

The statement also condemned "settlers violence", which resulted in the killing of one Palestinian and the "unacceptable destruction" of Palestinian property in Hawara by rampaging Israeli settlers late Sunday evening. 

In an earlier statement, the EU called on authorities on all sides to intervene and "protect civilians" to prevent further loss of life.  

Since Sunday evening, Israeli settlers in mass numbers attacked the Palestinian town of Hawara, and other towns in the occupied West Bank, torching cars, shops and homes and causing widespread damage. The attack on Hawara lasted for several hours with little or no intervention by the Israeli army. 

Residents said the settlers carried out their attacks "under the protection of the army."

Similarly, the US Office of Palestinian Affairs denounced settlers' attacks against Hawara as "heinous" and demanded accountability and legal prosecution against the perpetrators. 

Hady Amr, the US special representative to the Palestinian Authority, visited the town of Hawara on Tuesday to survey the damage. 

One activist described the settlers' attacks as "Kristallnacht" - the attack against German Jewish communities by the Nazi Party in 1938. 

Also on Tuesday, the Israeli police demolished two homes in occupied East Jerusalem. 

At least sixty-three Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces since the start of the year. Thirteen Israelis have been killed in the same period.