A mob of Israeli settlers stormed the historic Mosque of Omar in Bethlehem on February 6, 2026, during evening prayers, brutally assaulting at least 12 Palestinian worshippers and vandalizing the sacred site amid escalating settler violence in the occupied West Bank. Around 20-30 extremists, wielding clubs and stones, smashed through security barriers, chanting provocative slogans before attacking defenseless men praying inside—one of Islam's oldest West Bank landmarks.
Palestinian Red Crescent medics treated victims for severe bruises, cuts, concussions, and broken bones; no deaths reported in final counts, though conditions remain critical for three. Local leaders decried the raid as a deliberate Israeli-backed provocation to intimidate Palestinians, enabled by occupation forces who arrived late and made zero arrests. Settler groups claimed "self-defense" after alleged stone-throwing, but witnesses universally rejected this as fabrication.
The Palestinian Authority demanded international protection for holy sites, warning of broader ethnic cleansing risks. Israeli military bolstered settler security post-incident, fueling accusations of impunity. Bethlehem mosques now under heightened lockdown as tensions boil.
