Settler violence on Duma and Shukara communities

Rashash Bedouins ethnically cleansed for the second time since October 7th

Bedouin Palestinians community Rashash was expelled from its original location in the south Jordan Valley in late 2023 (October). ON Augustus 2025, they have been expelled again, from their encampment near Duma (Nablus Governorate). The few remaining individuals, as well as Israeli and international human rights advocates are under continued assault from settlers. A 35-year-old Palestinian man, Thamin Khalil Reda Dawabsheh, was shot dead by Israeli settlers in an attack in Duma on Augustus 13, 2025. Since Aug ’25 all the children and women no longer live there, while the men remain alongside human-rights activists who guard them 24/7.

On Augustus 15, Illegal Israeli settlers established a new settlement outpost only 400 meters from the Shakara Bedouin community, east of Duma town, south of Nablus city, according to Al-Baydar Organization for the Defense of Bedouin Rights.

On Augustus 17, Al-Baydar Organization noted that bulldozing work took place in the evening at the new outpost, which was established Friday. Meanwhile, illegal settlers pelted Palestinian vehicles with stones near the settlement of Shavei Shomron on the road linking Jenin and Nablus, causing damage to some cars, the Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.

On Augustus 22, since the morning, many settlers have invaded the town and its lands with their ATV.

On Augustus 29, in the evening, a group of Israeli settlers has attacked a Bedouin gathering in the town of Duma in the occupied West Bank, about 25km (15.5 miles) southeast of Nablus, assaulting one man, smashing his phone and carrying out acts of vandalism, according to the Wafa news agency.

On August 30th, according to the ONG Herd of Justice, "The settlers come 10-12 times per day, destroy property, attack people", says Adele Shoko, one of the activists. Along with two other activists, Adele was physically assaulted by the settlers on August 30th. Three settlers on an ATV surrounded her, stole her phone, pushed her to the ground and dragged her over the rocks with the ATV for several meters. After the attack, the settlers remained in the area, invading repeatedly every 20 minutes, further damaging the fence and water tanks. When the activists tried evacuating Adele to provide medical assistance, the settlers blocked the activist car with their ATV for half an hour. Occupation police and army were called six times, but refused to arrive on the scene.

Later that day, another activist was choked, pushed and scratched by a settler. During the night, the settlers attacked once more, assaulting activists again. Multiple people were injured.

On September 2:, Rabbi Arik Ascherman, who defends the Bedouin communities near the village of Duma, was arrested again today on vague and unclear suspicion, on the eve of Yom Kippur. Arrest comes against the backdrop of long nights in which repeated calls were made to the police by Palestinian residents, the Rabbi, and other activists. In these calls, the police did not respond to the residents’ and activists’ requests to come and prevent settlers from invading the area.

On September 10, The Israeli army and police broke down the gate of the Palestinian community near Duma, to open the path for settler attacks. They also removed human rights advocates, to prevent documentation of the war crime. This comes after weeks of daily invasions of the community. Then Settlers managed to break in and cause extensive damage.

On September 23, Terrorist Settlers from the Mal'chei HaShalom (“Peace Angels”) settlement infiltrated the village of Duma. During hours, their herd destroyed crops on private Palestinian land, while a heavily armed and masked Israeli soldiers protects them and refuses to remove them from the area. The Israeli police arrived to provide a variety of excuses for not removing the terrorists. The landowner was too afraid for the settlers to see his face, and activists are showing maps—but the police officer does nothing.

On September 26, Israeli police arrested HR activist while he was protecting the local community.

On September 28, Masked settlers invaded private Palestinian land on Saturday, dressed in holiday clothes. They harassed, threatened, and sowed terror.

On October 2, Settlers respond to activists’ calls to police by falsely accusing them of sexual harassment.

On October 3, For Yom Kippur, settlers from the ‘Giv’orei David’ outpost attempt to invade the private lands of Palestinian residents in Duma.

On December 16, Israeli settlers storm the center of the village of Duma with their weapons and sheep.

On January 2, 2026: Notorious settler thug assaulted an activist while invading a Palestinian yard. The police let them continue their harassement.

On January 14, 2026: Settlers are currently building a new outpost near a Bedouin community. The nearest outpost—Heroes of David—from which dozens of violent attacks were launched, during which large amounts of property were stolen and destroyed, seems not to have had its fill. Its settlers now want to impose terror from a distance of 20 meters, because 50 wasn’t enough.

On January 15, 2026: The settler-terrorists laid infrastructure for the terror outpost. One of the leaders of the settler violence brutally assaulted a human-rights activist. He knows he’s being filmed and doesn’t care. To add crime upon crime, it appears they are using equipment they stole on various occasions from residents of the Bedouin community over recent months.

On January 26, 2026, settlers attacked Palestinian property in the village of Duma, south of Nablus. The head of the village council, Suleiman Dawabsheh, reported that colonists stormed the Shakara neighborhood in the south of the village and attacked international solidarity activists and Palestinian property.

On February 6, 2026 settlers groups stormed the “Shakara” area of Duma, south of Nablus, attacking families, invading homes, and terrorizing residents in an effort to push them off their land.

Since January, this specific place in the West Bank has become the “place to be” for far-right Israeli influencers such as Mordechai David, Roi Star, and Benyahu Ben Shabbat (who is part of Im Tirtzu (אם תרצו), a right-wing organization that supports settlers). Their goal is to provoke activists from protective presence groups in order to create incidents. They then call the police or the army, claiming that Palestinians are terrorists and that activists are assisting them. This leads to several arrests among Palestinians as well as activists. Settlers are almost never arrested or sanctioned for their violent harassment, showing what observers describe as open collaboration between settlers and the army..

During the nights, settlers from the nearby illegal outpost Giborei David (גיבורי דוד), meaning “David’s Heroes,” attack the activists’ house, breaking windows, spraying pepper gas, or attempting to destroy the barracks.

On 1 March 2026, Around 11:00, settlers invaded a Bedouin community with their goats, all the while Iranian missile are flying overhead. They were armed with guns, batons and pepper spray. They attacked residents of Duma, south of Nablus, specifically targeting the ash-Shajara area east of the village.More armed settlers arrived to the scene. Around 12:00 They claimed they were attacked and called the army and police, who were looking to arrest Palestinians, instead of the settler attackers. During the assault, a Palestinian man, Ali Zawahra, was injured, and four young men, including members of the al‑Nawaj’ah family, were detained by Israeli forces. The village council head, Suleiman Dawabsheh, told WAFA that ambulance crews were prevented from reaching the injured and that settlers carried out the attacks while Israeli forces were present. He added that the main entrance to the village was blocked with a military roadblock, effectively imposing a closure during the incident. Dawabsha emphasized that attacks by settlers in the area have sharply escalated in recent weeks, often taking advantage of global attention being focused elsewhere. Among the most recent violations, he noted, was cutting electricity to the Shakara neighborhood, which is home to more than 80 residents. Adele Shoko was arrested after the far-right activist Benyahu Ben Shabbat called the authorities. Around 13:30, the Army detained an 18 years old activist who were pepper sprayed by settlers. She was later released. A male activist was also injured, while a Palestinian was kicked in the head by a settler armed with sticks. The scene was, as usual, filmed by both sides. Israeli far-right influencers attempted to depict the Palestinians and the protective presence as terrorists attacking settlers, while blatantly violating Palestinian property. Impunity remains: In the end, none of the settlers who invaded the community were arrested, but instead four Palestinians. One of them is a child.

Broader context:

The village of Duma itself is being surrounded by settler outposts, with the goal of launching further terror attacks against the community. Urgent coverage and international intervention is needed.