The United States on Thursday night condemned the violent riot by far-right activists in the Palestinian Arab town of Jit in Samaria.
"Attacks by violent settlers against Palestinian civilians in the West Bank are unacceptable and must stop. Israeli authorities must take measures to protect all communities from harm, this includes intervening to stop such violence, and holding all perpetrators of such violence to account,” said a spokesperson for the White House National Security Council.
Palestinian Arabs reported that a 20-year-old Palestinian Arab was shot dead during Thursday evening’s clashes in Jit. The incident is being investigated by the defense establishment. The Palestinian Arab “health ministry” reported that a second person suffered serious injuries.
Security forces were rushed to the scene to remove the extremist activists who, according to reports, set fire to houses and vehicles, and also threw rocks and firebombs.
The security forces arrested one Israeli citizen who was handed over to the Israel Police for further questioning. Following the incident, a joint investigation was launched by the IDF, the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) and the Israel Police.
"The IDF condemns events of this type and the rioters, who harm security, law and order, and divert the IDF and the security forces from their main mission of thwarting terrorism and protecting the security of the residents," it said.
The incident was widely condemned by Israeli lawmakers. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Prime said he “views with utmost severity the disturbances that took place this evening in Jit, which included attacks on people and property by Israelis who entered the village.”
“It is the IDF and the security forces that fight terrorism, and nobody else. Those responsible for any offense will be apprehended and tried,” he added.
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant commented on the incident and said, "While our soldiers are fighting on the various fronts to defend the State of Israel, a handful of extremists who do not represent the values of the settlement in Samaria, riot and harm innocent civilians."
"I strongly condemn any type of violence and give full support to the IDF, the Shin Bet and the Israel Police to carry out their duties and deal with the issue seriously. The riots by extremists go against every moral and value of the State of Israel," Gallant added.
The incident was also condemned by the head of the Samaria Regional Council, Yossi Dagan, and the head of the Kedumim Council, Ozel Vatika. They stressed that the attackers were youths who were not residents of Judea and Samaria.
"We wish to say in a clear way, in no uncertain terms: Even after the throwing of rocks, no one has the right to take the law into their own hands! The army and the enforcement agencies are the ones responsible for taking care of this. The settlement in Samaria finds the boys who come from outside Samaria and create violence to be contemptible. We say to those unwelcome guests who came to Samaria through bizarre WhatsApp groups in order to cause disorder and violence: If you want to behave violently, don't come here to Samaria - you are not welcome here," they said in a joint statement on Thursday night.
The two added, "We are already dealing here with terrorism, political difficulties from within the country and abroad, and we do not need your acts of violence and the bad name you give to the communities in Judea and Samaria and to the entire State of Israel. Recently there has been an increase in the number of terrorist attacks in the region. We know and see that the army is operating on the ground in order to calm things down and bring security to all of us and always demand more action and a tougher hand against terrorism."
"We have not lost sight of the fact that the young Arab who was killed during the incident is a definite supporter of terrorism, who was photographed with a weapon and posted on networks supporting the murderous Lions’ Den terrorist organization and acts of murder and terrorism - but we stress the obvious: The handling of terrorists and supporters of terrorism must be left to the IDF. Violent acts like we saw in Jit must not happen and have no place."