Four Palestinians and two Israelis killed in West Bank shooting

What the report says

BBC World News reported that at least four Palestinians and two Israelis were killed in a shooting in the occupied West Bank village of Tal, south-west of Nablus, on 24 July 2026. The BBC described it as the deadliest single incident of its kind in the territory in months, with competing accounts from Palestinian sources and the Israeli military about how the violence began.

According to Palestinian accounts cited by the BBC, local residents went to confront Jewish settlers they said were attacking Palestinian homes, before Israeli soldiers arrived and gunfire followed. The Palestinian foreign ministry said several Palestinians were wounded and condemned what it called a massacre, linking the violence to settler impunity. A local Fatah official cited by Reuters said two brothers and two cousins were among the Palestinian dead.

The Israel Defense Forces gave a different account, saying soldiers responded after Israeli hikers reported being attacked. The military said a Palestinian stole a security guard’s weapon, killed him and then fired at the hikers; it later said a 27-year-old Israeli soldier had also died during activity in the area. Israel’s ambulance service reported two Israelis wounded. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called an emergency security meeting and said Israel would act forcefully, while the IDF said it was preparing a major operation and had cancelled soldiers’ leave.

The incident comes amid sharply increased West Bank violence since the Gaza war began after the Hamas-led attacks on Israel on 7 October 2023. BBC cited UN figures saying more than 1,100 Palestinians and 41 Israelis have been killed in the West Bank in that period. Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem are considered illegal under international law.