US Official Visits Hawara, Washington Expects Prosecution of Settlers behind Attack

US Special Representative for Palestinian Affairs Hady Amr (R) inspects damaged property during a visit in the West Bank town of Hawara, near the city of Nablus, 28 February 2023. EPA/ALAA BADARNEH
US Special Representative for Palestinian Affairs Hady Amr (R) inspects damaged property during a visit in the West Bank town of Hawara, near the city of Nablus, 28 February 2023. EPA/ALAA BADARNEH
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US Official Visits Hawara, Washington Expects Prosecution of Settlers behind Attack

US Special Representative for Palestinian Affairs Hady Amr (R) inspects damaged property during a visit in the West Bank town of Hawara, near the city of Nablus, 28 February 2023. EPA/ALAA BADARNEH
US Special Representative for Palestinian Affairs Hady Amr (R) inspects damaged property during a visit in the West Bank town of Hawara, near the city of Nablus, 28 February 2023. EPA/ALAA BADARNEH

A US delegation, headed by the US Special Representative for Palestinian Affairs, Hady Amr, visited the town of Hawara, south of Nablus, two days after the largest attack by settlers on the town, during which they set fire to homes, cars and shops.

On Sunday night, settlers carried out around 300 attacks in Hawara, which led to the killing of Sameh Aktash 37, and the injury of more than 350 people. Dozens of houses and vehicles were burned and destroyed.

Amr expressed his deepest condolences and condemned the random, widespread and unacceptable acts of violence by settlers.

He stressed the need to see full accountability and prosecution through the law of those responsible for these “heinous” attacks and compensation for those who lost their property or were otherwise harmed.

“I am deeply concerned about the escalation of violence in the West Bank,” he added.

The US official visited a number of houses and facilities that were burned, and listened to the accounts of witnesses about the attacks carried out by settlers under the protection of the army.

After the visit, the United States Office for Palestinian Affairs in Jerusalem re-published, via Twitter, Amr's statement, in which he said: “We want to see full accountability and legal prosecution of those responsible for these heinous attacks and compensation for those who lost property or were otherwise affected.”

Amr’s visit, which lasted about an hour, came after the US administration announced that it expected Israel to prosecute those involved in the bloody settler attack in Hawara, and to provide compensation to the Palestinians whose homes and properties were destroyed.

“We expect the Israeli government to ensure full accountability and legal prosecution of those responsible for these attacks, in addition to compensation for the lost homes and property,” US State Department spokesman Ned Price told a press briefing.

The Israeli authorities arrested eight suspects following the attack on Sunday, but later released six of them. Price expressed Washington’s appreciation for the statements made by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog, which called on the Israelis to refrain from taking the law into their own hands.

The attack came few days after the deputy head of the settlement council in Samaria, David Ben Zion, wrote on Twitter that the village of Hawara must be erased.



Security Council Urges Syrian Authorities to Protect Minorities

Security personnel inspect vehicles at a checkpoint set up to confiscate stolen items, in Latakia, Syria March 14, 2025. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi
Security personnel inspect vehicles at a checkpoint set up to confiscate stolen items, in Latakia, Syria March 14, 2025. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi
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Security Council Urges Syrian Authorities to Protect Minorities

Security personnel inspect vehicles at a checkpoint set up to confiscate stolen items, in Latakia, Syria March 14, 2025. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi
Security personnel inspect vehicles at a checkpoint set up to confiscate stolen items, in Latakia, Syria March 14, 2025. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi

The UN Security Council has condemned the widespread violence in several provinces in Syria, calling on the interim authorities “to protect all Syrians without distinction.”

In a presidential statement it adopted unanimously on Friday, the Council “condemned the widespread violence perpetrated in Syria’s Latakia and Tartus provinces since 6 March — including mass killings of civilians among the Alawite community.”

The Council “condemned attacks targeting civilian infrastructure” and “called on all parties to immediately cease all violence and inflammatory activities and ensure the protection of all civilian populations and infrastructure, as well as humanitarian operations.”

It said “all parties and States must ensure full, safe and unhindered humanitarian access to those affected and the humane treatment of all persons. The Council also urged a rapid increase of humanitarian support across Syria.”

The Council “called for swift, transparent, independent, impartial and comprehensive investigations to ensure accountability and bring all perpetrators of violence against civilians to justice.”

It took note of the Syrian interim authorities’ establishment of an independent committee to investigate such violence and identify those responsible.

The Council also noted the Syrian decision to establish a committee for civil peace.

It renewed its call for an inclusive political process led and owned by Syrians, facilitated by the UN and based on the principles outlined in resolution 2254. “This includes safeguarding the rights of all Syrians — regardless of ethnicity or religion — meeting their legitimate aspirations and enabling them to peacefully, independently and democratically determine their futures.”

Meanwhile, the Special Envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, hoped that the Constitutional Declaration issued by the Syrian authorities “will move Syria toward restoring the rule of law and promoting an orderly inclusive transition.”

Pedersen issued a statement on the fourteenth anniversary of the war in Syria.

“Now is the time for bold moves to create a genuinely credible and inclusive transitional government and legislative body; a constitutional framework and process to draft a new constitution for the long term that is credible and inclusive too; and genuine transitional justice,” he said.

“More than three months since the fall of the Assad regime, Syria now stands at a pivotal moment,” he added.

The Special Envoy called for “an immediate end to all violence and for protection of civilians in accordance with international law” and called “for a credible independent investigation into the recent killings and violence, and for the full cooperation of the caretaker authorities with the United Nations in this regard.”