TELL: Israeli settlers attempted to set fire to a mosque in the West Bank village of Tell early on Monday, according to the Palestinian Authority’s Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs. The attack targeted the Abu Bakr al-Siddiq Mosque near Nablus, with assailants reportedly writing racist slogans on the mosque’s walls.
In a statement, the ministry condemned the incident, calling it part of a wider pattern of escalating attacks on mosques in the West Bank, which totaled 45 in 2025 alone. “The burning of part of the mosque clearly demonstrates the barbarity reached by the Israeli racist incitement machine toward Islamic and Christian holy sites in Palestine,” the statement said.
A journalist on the ground reported burnt carpets, blackened walls and windows, and broken front doors, though the fire did not spread throughout the building, preventing major structural damage.
Israel’s military said that army and police forces had been dispatched to Tell after receiving reports and video footage of the attack. “No injuries were reported,” the military added, noting that authorities are currently searching for the suspects.
Ghassan Daghlas, the Palestinian governor of the Nablus region, condemned the attack in a video posted on social media. Standing at the mosque with a garden hose to clean debris, he said: “They burned the mosque, and we are the ones rebuilding it. This is our land — the land of Palestine.”
Excluding Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, over 500,000 Israelis live in settlements and outposts across the West Bank, which are considered illegal under international law. Analysts note that attacks on religious sites in the occupied territories have increased tensions and inflamed local and international criticism of settlement policies.
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