A group of Palestinian farmers from the Hebron-area town of Halhul in the West Bank and activists from the Bnei Avraham organization who were protecting them were attacked by a group of some 10 settlers on Monday, an activist from Bnei Avraham told The Times of Israel.

The activist, who asked not to be named, said that around 30 Palestinians and activists had arrived to work on privately owned Palestinian farmland near Halhul. The farmland is located in Area C, where Israel maintains both security and civilian control.

The activist said that the settlers who initially descended on them were from a nearby outpost, and were later joined by others from additional outposts in the area.

The group assaulted the Palestinians and activists, punching and kicking them, she recounted, before vandalizing five Palestinian vehicles, smashing their windows and mirrors, and slashing their tires.

She further said that, following the violent incident, IDF troops arrived at the scene and presented an order declaring the area a closed military zone, before removing the Palestinians and activists from the area.

Local residents are supposed to be exempt from closed military zone orders, and the one wielded by the troops had been issued to evacuate the nearby illegal outpost, not the Palestinian farmland.

הממשלה מממנת את הטרור היהודי לפני זמן קצר מתנחלים קיצונים השחיתו רכבים של פלסטינים שלוו על ידי פעילי קבוצת הנוכחות המגינה ״בני אברהם״ ליד חלחול. Advertisement if(typeof rgb_remove_toi_dfp_banner != "function" ||........

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