January 16, 2026 – Al-Mughayyir
Israeli forces raided the home of the Abu Hamam family in al-Khalayel on the outskirts of al-Mughayyir (east Ramallah) and arrested three US activists and one Irish activist after a settler trespassed on the family’s land. As the arrests were happening, Israeli forces shot and killed 14 year old Muhammad Saad Sami Naasan in front of al-Mughayyir mosque, right after prayer. As of now, two activists have been released with a ban from the West Bank, while a US and an Irish citizen will face deportation hearings tomorrow at Ben Gurion, showing the arbitrary conditions of the arrest.
During the three hour raid at Abu Hamam’s, Israeli forces took the security cameras and forbade Palestinians and internationals from eating. All four internationals were arrested under false accusations of assault of a minor and conduct to violate public peace while one is accused of use of poison to commit a crime and two are accused of attempt of injury to an animal.
One of the US activists stated: “I have chosen to travel to Palestine as it has increasingly become difficult to watch the ongoing genocide and racist violence by Israel against the Palestinian people. I have always believed in international solidarity, and this is one way that I am able to participate in this moment, in hopefully moving towards a free Palestine and a free world. I don’t believe any one individual can do everything, but I do believe we all can do something to contribute towards a free world.”
Locals report that settlers also opened fire in the vicinity of the property after the arrests. During the concurrent raid in the town of al-Mughayyir, Israeli forces assaulted a young man with special needs, leaving him with bruises all over his body, and arrested a man. They also attacked Al-Badr Tiles Company and its owner, confiscating the company’s cameras and removing their recordings.
This arrest comes amid an ongoing campaign of intimidation against the Abu Hamam family, who have faced months of coordinated attacks by Israeli forces and settlers. Recently, settlers have continued to graze on Palestinian lands around the house, letting their sheep eat the olive trees and stealing water while aided and abetted by the Israeli army. The same settler that trespassed prior to the arrests has been terrorizing the Abu Hamam family, as well as their Palestinian neighbors daily. This settler has destroyed and stolen parts of the fence of a neighbors property multiple times to forcefully allow his sheep to destroy the family’s olive groves.
“When I see Palestinian families watching their homes being demolished, I see my ancestors who sat on the roadside while RIC and bailiffs demolished their homes 150 years ago, leaving them to starve to death. My family line are genocide survivors. I concluded empathy without action is worse than not caring at all,” said the Irish activist. “And so, when I saw ISMs urgent call for volunteers in the summer, I felt compelled to go, to say to Palestinians you are not alone, people care deeply and people feel deeply the injustice you’re enduring. But most of all I am inspired by Palestinian faith, strength and dignity in the face of decades of unashamed evil, violence and power.”
On December 30, three international activists were surrounded, thrown to the ground, handcuffed, and forcibly taken from Abu Hamam home. They were held for hours at a military base without being traceable before being transferred to a police station. One of them was injured in a settler attack on December 7, resulting in injuries to the family’s matriarch, 59-year-old Fadda Abu Naim, 13-year-old Riziq Abu Naim, and four international solidarity activists.
On December 18, Israel deported two US activists, Irene Cho and Trudi Frost, after they spent a week in jail challenging their unlawful arrests and deportation orders. The two were arrested on December 12 at the Abu Hamam property after Israeli forces served a one month long military area order encompassing an area which did not include the Abu Hamam residence, where the activists were staying. Several military raids took place the following days as the forces looked for solidarity activists. Meanwhile, settlers are allowed to roam the area, attacking and harassing Palestinian communities with complete impunity.
On December 21, Israeli forces threatened the family with demolishing their house if they did not stop having internationals in their home. While the army was raiding Abu Hamam’s house, just a few meters down the valley, a group of international activists was being chased by armed settlers, in an attempt to intimidate them and prevent them to continue their solidarity work in the al-Khalayel area.
These attacks by settlers and soldiers are intended to forcibly displace the Abu Hamam family from their land as part of the implementation of the Israeli policy of ethnic cleansing of Palestinians. In this case, displacing the family will also facilitate Israel’s creation of a line of settlements and settlement outposts all the way from the East Ramallah area to the South Nablus area, and from there to the Jordan Valley.
