Settlers attack U.S. convoy near West Bank outpost

By Edo Konrad January 2, 2015 | Edit

Settlers from the West Bank outpost of Adei Ad threw rocks at a U.S. Consulate convoy carrying American diplomats on Friday afternoon. The convoy was hit upon arriving at a nearby Palestinian village to examine olive groves that were uprooted a day prior.

According to Ynet, American security personnel drew their M16 rifles as settlers approached the convoy. The State Department later denied that guns were drawn. No one was injured in the confrontation.

One of the U.S. Consulate vehicles that was hit by a rock. (photo: Rabbis for Human Rights)

The diplomats arrived in the area after Palestinians who live in village of Turmus Aya and have U.S. citizenship asked them to look at the damage caused to their trees. The convoy included workers from Jerusalem, although the consul was not present. Settlers claimed that the diplomats entered the area without prior permission, and that their presence allowed Palestinians to enter the outpost.

The U.S. Consulate has yet to officially respond to the event, however American sources say that the president is currently looking into the incident. Israeli police, however, stated that the consulate members arrived without prior coordination.

Turmus Aya recently made headlines in after Palestinian Authority Minister Ziad Abu Ein collapsed there in the wake of an attack by an Israeli soldier. Abu Ein died shortly thereafter in a Ramallah hospital.

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TEST TEST GAL Our team has been devastated by the horrific events of this latest war. The world is reeling from Israel’s unprecedented onslaught on Gaza, inflicting mass devastation and death upon besieged Palestinians, as well as the atrocious attack and kidnappings by Hamas in Israel on October 7. Our hearts are with all the people and communities facing this violence. We are in an extraordinarily dangerous era in Israel-Palestine. The bloodshed has reached extreme levels of brutality and threatens to engulf the entire region. Emboldened settlers in the West Bank, backed by the army, are seizing the opportunity to intensify their attacks on Palestinians. The most far-right government in Israel’s history is ramping up its policing of dissent, using the cover of war to silence Palestinian citizens and left-wing Jews who object to its policies. This escalation has a very clear context, one that +972 has spent the past 14 years covering: Israeli society’s growing racism and militarism, entrenched occupation and apartheid, and a normalized siege on Gaza. We are well positioned to cover this perilous moment – but we need your help to do it. This terrible period will challenge the humanity of all of those working for a better future in this land. Palestinians and Israelis are already organizing and strategizing to put up the fight of their lives. Can we count on your support? +972 Magazine is a leading media voice of this movement, a desperately needed platform where Palestinian and Israeli journalists, activists, and thinkers can report on and analyze what is happening, guided by humanism, equality, and justice. Join us.

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