4 Palestinians, Israeli settler injured in West Bank clashes

Palestinian residents and Israeli settlers clashed Tuesday in northern West Bank and five people from both sides were injured, witnesses said. The injured were four Palestinians and a Jewish settler, the witnesses said. The scuffle started when dozens of settlers attacked a Palestinian house in Al-Laban village near Nablus city. The settlers sought to take over the house. "We came under a barbaric Israeli attack and the settlers beat us and destroyed the contents of the house," said the wife of the house owner Majed Daraghmeh. Several residents from the village gathered around the house and clashed with the settlers before Israeli forces brought the situation under control. The Israeli army arrested two Palestinians during the operation. The Palestinian National Authority (PNA) has often warned against rising attacks by settlers in the West Bank, which Israel has occupied in 1967. About 120,000 settlers live in settlements in the West Bank, which is also home to 2.7 million Palestinians. Peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians broke down in 2010 after Israel resumed building settlements in the West Bank. In the Gaza Strip, meanwhile, the Israeli navy arrested two Palestinian fishermen off the coast, an official said. The fishermen were sailing in their boat inside the 2-nautical- mile fishing area Israel has allocated to Gaza fishermen, said Nizar Ayesh, the fishermen's representative.