Residents of Al Mughayyir, in the Israeli occupied West Bank, said settlers attacked the place on Saturday setting fire to a car and properties in and near the village.

“All these continuous attacks are aimed at nothing more and nothing less than forcing people to leave this area.” said Marzuq Abu Naim, a member of the village's council.

Among those affected was Yasser Al Zubaidi “They want to take our land away from us, but they will never be able to deprive us of it,” said the local farmer and butcher, while looking at what was left of his damaged property

“God willing, we will remain steadfast as much as we can, even if we die here. Our duty is to protect ourselves and protect our land.”

The attack comes days after Israel’s far-right finance minister said that a contentious new settlement construction on a tract of land east of Jerusalem named E1, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank is going ahead — a project that Palestinians and rights groups worry will scuttle plans for a Palestinian state by effectively cutting the territory into two parts.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich boasted that the construction, which is expected to get final approval later this month could thwart Palestinian statehood plans.

His announcement came as many countries, including Australia, Britain, France, and Canada say they will recognize a Palestinian state in September, at the United Nations General Assembly.

Settler violence in the West Bank has increased after the Hamas October 7th 2023 attack in southern Israel.

In January, U.S. President Donald Trump canceled sanctions against Israelis accused of violence in the Palestinian territory.

This was a reversal of the Biden administration’s sanctions, which were meant to punish radical settlers.

The West Bank’s 3 million Palestinians already live under seemingly open-ended Israeli military rule, with the Palestinian Authority administering cities and towns.

Palestinians want both territories for a future state and have long viewed the settlements as a major obstacle to peace, while the international community overwhelmingly considers them illegal.

There are more than 500,000 settlers in the West Bank and Jerusalem who have Israeli citizenship.