Israeli settlers have for the first time established an illegal outpost within Jerusalem’s city limits, according to local media.
Residents of two Palestinian villages reported incursions by dozens of Jewish extremists, who attacked them with tear gas and rocks, and blocked them from grazing their sheep.
Clashes at the village of Nuaman on Sunday resulted in the arrest of four Palestinians and another four being wounded, Haaretz reported.
The encampment was reportedly established in late March close to the village, which is situated on the eastern outskirts of Jerusalem.
Some of the settlers came from the nearby settlement of Har Homa, and others previously lived at other outposts.
Haaretz said the settlers vandalised buildings throughout the village, spray-painting the Star of David, the word ‘revenge’ and the name of their outpost, ‘Homat Yehuda’.
Police told The Times of Israel that the clashes were caused by “an ongoing land dispute in the area between Arabs and Jews”.
One of the arrested Palestinians has since been released, though police have extended the detention of the other three by six days on the basis that they live in Israel illegally.
Nuaman has been designated as an illegal settlement by Israel. Authorities consider it part of the occupied West Bank, despite it lying within the Jerusalem city limits. This has resulted in the majority of its residents being denied permanent Israeli residency, unlike other Palestinians living in East Jerusalem.
The settlers have also attacked residents of the village of Umm Tuba, who have for years used the land near the outpost to graze their sheep.
Shepherds reported being threatened by a large group of police officers on Monday, who ordered them to leave and insulted the head of the village.
Settler violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank has surged since Israel launched its war on Gaza in October 2023 and has accelerated further this year.
Almost 1,700 Palestinians were displaced by settler attacks in the first three months of this year alone, surpassing the total number in all of 2025, according to UN data.
