Agricultural and nationalist terror in Judea and Samaria struck again, this time under cover of the Sabbath: Last Friday night, Arab rioters from the village of Huwara broke into Tzafnat Farm near Tapuah in Samaria. The Arabs used the cover of darkness to steal the farm’s flock of sheep—the farmers’ livelihood—and drove the stolen animals into the village.
In the early morning hours, when the theft was discovered, the farm owner called security forces and volunteers from the area. The farmers, along with residents who came to help, launched an urgent search for the stolen flock, following the thieves’ escape route that led directly to the outskirts of Huwara.
Planned Ambush: Clubs, Stones, and Attempted Ramming
The residents’ legitimate search for their property quickly met with severe and organized Arab violence: Dozens of Arab rioters from the village surrounded the farmers and volunteers and began attacking them brutally with clubs and a heavy barrage of stones, in a deliberate attempt to disrupt the pursuit and allow the flock to be hidden. The volunteers were forced to defend their lives with their bare hands.
In another serious incident during the event, one of the Arabs pulled out a knife and threatened the volunteers with it. Immediately afterward, the rioter rammed his vehicle into one of the Israeli volunteers’ cars in an attempt to flee the scene.
Tzafnat Farm Fights Back Against Leftist Lies Campaign
After the Sabbath ended, Tzafnat Farm didn’t stay silent in the face of distorted reports spread by various media outlets and radical leftist organizations, which tried as usual to turn the victim into the aggressor. Meanwhile, according to reports from Arabs living in the village, about nine Arabs were injured during the incidents in the area. The radical left rushed to distribute an edited video showing two Arabs being detained, while deliberately omitting the fact that the two had actively participated in the violent stone attack just minutes earlier.
“Under cover of the Sabbath, the media and radical leftist organizations chose to run a malicious campaign against the farm,” Tzafnat Farm representatives said sharply. “They painted a partial, biased, and distorted picture, while blatantly ignoring the theft of the flock and the violent attacks by Huwara Arabs against those searching.”
The farm reminded the Israeli public who Huwara really is—a village that serves as an ongoing terror hub in the heart of Samaria: “Any attempt to whitewash the village of Huwara—which has waged a terror war against the hilltop residents for years, supported and laughed at the murder of the holy brothers Hillel and Yigal Yaniv, praised the Neve Yaakov massacre and the October 7 massacre, and repeatedly carries out violent attacks against the farm—is despicable and dangerous.”
IDF Spokesman’s Response: “Forces Rushed to Prevent Friction; Violence Attributed to Soldier”
Following the serious incidents, security forces were called to the scene to restore order. The IDF spokesperson responded to the events: “Earlier today (Saturday), IDF and Border Police forces rushed to several locations in the Huwara area in the Samaria Brigade, following a report of suspected theft of sheep belonging to Israeli civilians, in order to remove the Israeli civilians and the sheep from the village and prevent friction in the area. Subsequently, several rioters arrived in the village area and violent friction developed that included stone-throwing and use of clubs between Israeli civilians and ‘Palestinians’. The claim about several ‘Palestinians’ who were injured is known.
“The forces acted to disperse the gatherings while using riot dispersal means. The gatherings were dispersed and security forces are in the area to prevent additional disturbances. Investigation of the incident has begun in the Samaria District Police. The IDF strongly condemns violence of any kind that harms security in the area and diverts the attention of commanders and soldiers from defense missions and thwarting terror.”
Additionally, regarding footage circulated on social media showing a soldier striking one of the Arabs, the IDF spokesman said: “Footage is known in which an IDF soldier acted violently toward a ‘Palestinian’. The actions seen in the video are serious and are not consistent with IDF values. The case is being investigated, and when the soldier is located he will be dealt with disciplinarily and command and disciplinary steps will be taken according to the findings.”
The activists concluded their remarks with an optimistic message of national resilience and faith in the justice of their path: “We are confident and certain that the people of Israel learned long ago to distinguish between truth and lies, between reliable reporting and libel, and will stand this time too on the side of the settlement people and not on the side of the enemy.” The hilltop pioneers will continue to hold onto the land, guard the homeland’s soil, and will not surrender to agricultural terror.