During last week’s settler killing of a Palestinian-American teen in the West Bank, Israel Defense Forces soldiers were present as some 30 armed and masked settlers shot several Palestinians and stole hundreds of sheep from a private farm, according to new details of the attack published by the Haaretz newspaper Tuesday, citing witness testimony.

In the attack, which took place in the central West Bank Palestinian village of Mukhmas on Wednesday night, 19-year-old Nasrallah Abu Siam was shot and severely beaten by settlers with clubs while he was unconscious. He succumbed to his wounds in the hospital the next day.

According to witness testimony cited by Haaretz, Abu Siam and several Palestinians were tending to a privately owned plot of farmland east of Mukhmas when several settlers arrived with the apparent intent to steal from the farm.

“Suddenly, a settler arrived with a rifle along with two other adult settlers and a boy, maybe ten years old,” a witness told Haaretz, identifying the armed man as Amiel Dahan, the head of the local security squad of the nearby Neve Erez settlement.

According to the witness, Elisha Yered, a prominent settler activist who has been sanctioned by several countries for his involvement in violence against Palestinians, was also present at the time.

At one point, an argument began as the settlers encroached on the private farmland, prompting the arrival of dozens more armed settlers and several IDF troops.

According to the witness, some 40 minutes after the incident began, IDF soldiers began firing warning shots and tear gas in the direction of the Palestinians. When told by a Palestinian that the settlers were there to steal their sheep, a soldier threatened to shoot the farmer, the witness added.

מתנחלים מבריחים צאן מדיר בכפר מוחמאס שבגדה.צילום: Herd of Justice pic.twitter.com/Y32FrhqARW Advertisement if(typeof rgb_remove_toi_dfp_banner != "function" || !rgb_remove_toi_dfp_banner("#336x280_Middle_1")){ window.tude = window.tude || { cmd: [] }; tude.cmd.push(function() { if(navigator.userAgent.indexOf("rgbmedia-app") > -1){ tude.setDeviceType("mobile"); } tude.refreshAdsViaDivMappings([ { divId: '336x280_Middle_1', baseDivId: '336x280_Middle_1', } ]); }); } — הארץ חדשות (@haaretznewsvid) February 18, 2026

מתנחלים מבריחים צאן מדיר בכפר מוחמאס שבגדה.צילום: Herd of Justice pic.twitter.com/Y32FrhqARW

— הארץ חדשות (@haaretznewsvid) February 18, 2026

Some 20 masked settlers, some armed with clubs, began stealing hundreds of sheep from the nearby pens. Security camera footage from Mukhmas, published by left-wing activist group Herd of Justice, showed a settler running into a barn and waving a stick to get the animals out.

According to the Kan public broadcaster, the settlers stole 380 head of livestock from the Palestinian farm. Other reports said that settlers also stole farm equipment and power tools from the farm.

During the entire incident, soldiers accompanied the settlers as they stole the hundreds of sheep, blocking the Palestinian farmers from stopping the theft of their property, according to witness testimony and security footage.

תיעוד: פלסטינים זורקים אבנים לפני הירי אתמול בשטחי מרעה ליד רמאללה שממנו נהרג נסראללה אבו סיאם, תושב הכפר מוחמאס. בצה״ל עורכים תחקיר של מפקד החטיבה ומפקד אוגדת איו״ש לגבי זהות היורה – חייל הגנה מרחבית או מתנחל@HGoldich pic.twitter.com/Ryxz7iLmE2 — כאן חדשות (@kann_news) February 19, 2026

תיעוד: פלסטינים זורקים אבנים לפני הירי אתמול בשטחי מרעה ליד רמאללה שממנו נהרג נסראללה אבו סיאם, תושב הכפר מוחמאס. בצה״ל עורכים תחקיר של מפקד החטיבה ומפקד אוגדת איו״ש לגבי זהות היורה – חייל הגנה מרחבית או מתנחל@HGoldich pic.twitter.com/Ryxz7iLmE2

— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) February 19, 2026

As the settlers herded the sheep up a nearby hill away from the farm, some Palestinians followed them, and clashes ensued as both sides hurled rocks at each other from afar.

Then, at least one settler opened fire with his rifle in the direction of the Palestinians below him, wounding several, including one critically and at least two with moderate injuries.

The critically wounded man, later identified as 19-year-old Abu Siam, a dual US-Palestinian citizen, was approached by settlers while he was lying wounded and unconscious and was severely beaten with clubs for several minutes.

“Nasrallah lost consciousness after he was shot and they began to gather around him, beat him with clubs and stones and almost killed him,” a witness told Haaretz. “They behaved like animals. There was no humanity in them. They shoot a human being and then beat him with clubs.”

“The army was there at this point, watching and doing nothing,” the witness said. “The soldiers stood and smoked as if nothing was happening. It was terrible.”

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said three people shot by settlers were rushed to the Palestine Medical Complex, including Abu Siam, whose condition was described as serious. The Palestinian Authority’s Jerusalem Governorate later announced Abu Siam had succumbed to his wounds at the hospital.

In response to a query, the IDF said troops were dispatched to Mukhmas on Wednesday “following a report of rioting and violent confrontations that included stone-throwing,” and that later, “another force arrived at the scene and used riot dispersal means to restore order.”

The military said it later received reports of gunfire by “suspects” that resulted in several Palestinians being wounded.

“No gunfire by IDF troops during the incident is known,” the military said, adding that the incident is under further investigation. However, according to Kan, it was still unclear if the settler who fired the shot was part of one of the IDF’s so-called area defense forces, known by the Hebrew acronym Hagmar. Dozens of soldiers from such units, which comprise local settlers in reserve duty, have been dismissed for violations, including attacks on Palestinians, the military said last month.

According to Haaretz, the IDF has yet to release its findings from the investigation into the incident, which police are waiting on to decide if they will open their own investigation into the matter.

Abu Siam was the first person killed by Israeli settlers in the West Bank in 2026, and the 37th since the Hamas-led onslaught of October 7, 2023, according to the PA’s official news agency WAFA.

He was also at least the sixth American citizen to be killed in the West Bank by Israeli forces or settlers since October 7, 2023. American-born teenagers Tawfic Abdel Jabbar and Mohammad Khdour were killed in early 2024 by Israeli fire while driving in the West Bank. In April 2025, 14-year-old Amer Rabee, a New Jersey native, was shot in the head at least nine times by Israeli forces, according to his father.

In July 2025, two Palestinian-Americans were killed in separate settler attacks: 20-year-old Saif Musallet was beaten to death while visiting family in the town of Sinjil; 41-year-old Khamis Ayyad, from Chicago, died from smoke inhalation after settlers allegedly set his West Bank home on fire.

Settler attacks, which occur on a near-daily basis, largely go unchecked and prosecutions of Jewish extremists are rare, with convictions are even rarer. Critics have accused the government, described as the most hardline in Israel’s history, of shrugging off the attacks.

Data published by the IDF and Shin Bet security agency last month showed a 27 percent rise in settler attacks in 2025 compared to the previous year.

If so, we have a request. 

Every day during the past two years of war and rising global anti-Zionism and antisemitism, our journalists kept you abreast of the most important developments that merit your attention. Millions of people rely on ToI for fact-based coverage of Israel and the Jewish world. 

We care about Israel - and we know you do too. So we have an ask for this new year of 2026: express your values by joining The Times of Israel Community, an exclusive group for readers like you who appreciate and financially support our work. 

We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.

You clearly find our careful reporting valuable, in a time when facts are often distorted and news coverage often lacks context.

Your support is essential to continue our work. We want to continue delivering the professional journalism you value, even as the demands on our newsroom have grown dramatically since October 7.

So today, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. For as little as $6 a month you'll become our partners while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.

Thank you,David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel

1 Dead Sea ScrollsGreat Isaiah Scroll, oldest near-complete biblical book ever found, on show in entirety for 1st time since 1968

2 InterviewTaking a final lap in Milan, US skating medalist Emery Lehman enters Jewish Olympic lore

3 AnalysisThe Tucker Carlson-Mike Huckabee debate is a battle for the GOP’s soul on Israel

4 Netanyahu: An attack on Israel would be ‘most serious mistake’ in Iranian history

5 Trump: Top general doesn’t oppose Iran war, thinks it would be ‘easily won’

6 US refuelers, cargo planes spotted at Ben Gurion Airport as Iran tensions ramp up

7 ExclusiveHamas seen working to maintain control of Gaza via Trump-backed bodies

8 Trump mulling limited Iran strike, could try for regime change later – report

Palestinian Americans

IDF Israel Defense Forces

© The Times of Israel