Above photo: Poster depicting Mohammad Shalabi and Sayfollah Musallet. Aseel Saleh.
The crime is part of an unprecedented brutal wave of settler violence across the occupied West Bank.
The violence has been encouraged by Ben-Gvir’s fascist measures.
Friday, July 11, marked a profound bereavement for the residents of Al-Mazraa Al-Sharqiyah village northeast of Ramallah, in the central occupied West Bank, after a group of illegal Israeli settlers treacherously murdered two young men of the village.
Mohammad Shalabi (23), and Sayfollah Musallet (20) were in Mount Al-Baten, located between Al-Mazraa Al-Sharqiyah and a nearby village called Sinjil, when they were attacked by settlers and killed.
A resident of Al-Mazraa Al-Sharqiyah told Peoples Dispatch that illegal Israeli settlers began to vandalize farms belonging to families of the village in Mount Al-Baten over a month ago.
Following this, the people of Al-Mazraa Al-Sharqiyah and Senjil decided to send groups of male residents to farm and guard their lands in the mountain every Friday.
The villager, who spoke on condition of anonymity, noted that these lands became a target for illegal Israeli colonists after recent improvements were made by their Palestinian owners to increase their agricultural productivity.
Musallet Was Brutally Beaten To Death
Sayfollah Musallet (also known as Saif) was raised in Florida. He returned to Palestine last month to spend time with his family, not knowing it would be his last resting place.
Shortly after his agonizing death, Sayfollah’s family issued a statement, in which they provided details on the circumstances of his murder. As per the statement, Sayfollah was surrounded by a group of illegal Israeli settlers for three hours, during which he was subjected to brutal beating while he was in a land owned by his family in Al-Baten.
The family explained that ambulances and paramedics were trying to reach Sayfollah and provide him with lifesaving aid, but the mob of settlers blocked their way, making his rescue impossible.
After the settlers evacuated the area, Sayfollah’s younger brother rushed to carry him to the ambulance, but he took his last breath prior to arriving at the hospital.
The family concluded their statement by demanding the US State Department “lead an immediate investigation and hold the Israeli settlers who killed Sayfollah accountable for their crimes.”
IOF May Have Misled Shalabi’s Family About His Whereabouts To Impede His Survival
Peoples Dispatch interviewed Rezeq Shalabi, the father of Mohammad Shalabi, who described the dreadful hours on July 11 after he and his family received a call about a terrorist settler attack in Al-Baten.
“[We were] informed that a young man from Al-Mazraa Al-Sharqiyah was killed by a group of illegal settlers in Al-Baten, noting that he had not been identified yet,” Mohammad’s father said.
“We began to call Mohammad and some friends, who were with him and Sayfollah, but their phones were turned off,” The heart-broken father added.
“After a short while, we received news that Mohammad escaped the attack unharmed, and that he escorted an injured friend to a hospital. Nevertheless, a couple of hours after feeling relieved, we were told that the person who accompanied the injured one to the hospital was not Mohammad, and that our son was missing,” He continued.
Consequently, the family contacted Palestinian officials in charge of coordination and liaison with the IOF to ask them about Mohammad’s whereabouts. The IOF in turn confirmed that Mohammad was held in their captivity.
Rezeq recounted that after waiting for five hours, hoping that Mohammad was temporarily arrested and he will be released soon, the IOF told them that the person detained by them was not Mohammad.
“How come they could not recognize from the beginning that the person they detained was not Mohammad, while they confirmed that they had his ID card,” the bereaved parent wondered, referring to the IOF.
After the IOF declared that Mohammad was not held by them, men of the family along with residents from their village and from Sinjil, headed immediately to Al-Baten and began to search for Mohammad.
The 23-year-old young man was finally found deceased in Al-Baten Friday night. According to medical reports and to eyewitnesses, Mohammad was first shot by settlers, while trying to run away as they surrounded him and another friend. The settlers then chased him and beat him even after being shot.
A medical report issued by the Palestinian Health Ministry confirmed that Mohammad’s death resulted from “a live bullet wound to the chest, which penetrated the back, and that he was left to bleed for hours.”
The details mentioned by Mohammad’s father, in addition to those recorded in the medical report, suggest that the IOF deliberately misled the family of the slain Palestinian youth about his whereabouts while he was bleeding for hours, to impede his survival.
It is worth noting that the IOF accompany settlers, who enter Palestinian areas across the West Bank, or at the very least stay at a close proximity from them, which also indicates their complicity in any terrorist settler attacks launched against Palestinians.
US Inaction To The Assassination Of Palestinian-Americans
The assassination of Sayfollah Musallet raised the death toll of Palestinian-Americans, who were killed by Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) or illegal Israeli settlers since 2022, to nine people including Al Jazeera veteran reporter Shireen Abu Akleh.
All the targeted homicides that preceded the killing of Sayfollah, were met with indifference by US officials, who have not sought to hold the murderers accountable for their crimes, according to the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC).
In the case of Abu Akleh, the US is said to have failed the late prominent journalist after concluding that the Israeli soldier who killed her, shot her unintentionally, although she was wearing a clearly marked press vest.
“Typically, when Americans are killed abroad, the United States government mobilizes the full weight of the State Department, the FBI, and international partners within hours. But when the perpetrators are Israeli settlers or security forces, many US citizens themselves, Washington’s response is silence, delay, or repeating the lies of Israeli authorities,” ADC said in a press release issued on Friday.
Nevertheless, Kamel Musallet, the father of Sayfollah told Peoples Dispatch on Tuesday, July 15, that he hopes that the Trump administration would take the necessary measures to hold the slayers of his son legally liable, following considerable pressure by US representatives.
Despite his unspeakable distress, Kamel hopes that the death of his son will bring an end to “the terrorism and violence perpetrated by illegal Israeli settlers against Palestinians.”
US Representatives Demand Justice For Sayfollah Musallet
Rashida Tlaib
Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib slammed the US administration which continues to send billions in aid to Israel instead of pursuing justice for Sayfollah and other Palestinian-Americans.
“An American was beaten to death by Israeli settlers backed by the military. Instead of pursuing justice for Sayfollah, our government continues to send billions to prop up the apartheid system that killed him and kills Palestinians like him every day. Arms Embargo Now,” Tlaib wrote.
John B. Larson
Meanwhile, US Representative John B. Larson of Connecticut released a statement on Tuesday, condemning what happened to Sayfollah, who has family in Connecticut, as “horrific violence”. Larson called for swiftly bringing the settlers who killed him to justice, and for an investigation to be conducted.
“There is no place for such horrific violence. The settlers responsible for Sayfollah’s death should be swiftly brought to justice, and I join with his family in calling for a formal inquiry by the US State Department and an FBI investigation,” Larson wrote.
“Violence in the West Bank, which clearly goes against the goal of achieving peace for Israelis and Palestinians, must end. I am a cosponsor of the West Bank Violence Prevention Act in Congress to sanction instigators of settler violence, and I urge all my colleagues to join in demanding accountability,” He added.
Chuy García
Representative Chuy García also urged the US government to conduct an “independent investigation” into Sayfollah’s murder and “demand accountability of all those involved.”
The US Asks Israel To Probe The Killing Of Sayfollah, Labeling It As A “Terrorist Act”
The Trump administration seems to have responded to the demands of the representatives, with the US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee announcing on Tuesday that he asked the Israeli government “to aggressively investigate the murder of Saif Mussallet.”
“There must be accountability for this criminal and terrorist act. Saif was just 20 yrs old,” Huckabee asserted.
Taking into consideration its entrenched impunity, Israel’s compliance with Huckabee’s request is not guaranteed. However, branding the crime committed against Sayfollah as an act of terrorism, gives a glimmer of hope regarding a potential change in the US discourse towards Israel.
Ben-Gvir; The Biggest Enabler Of Settler Violence
The latest brutal wave of settler violence is believed to have been ignited by fascist measures enforced by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.
Last Wednesday, July 9, Ben-Gvir announced the formation of quasi-police squads composed of illegal armed settlers. This move would enable settlers to inflict death and sabotage on Palestinians to a greater extent.
