Baby dies in West Bank terror attack

Suspected Jewish attackers torched a Palestinian home in the occupied West Bank, killing an 18-month-old toddler and injuring three family members. Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, described it as terrorism.

The house in Duma, a village near the city of Nablus, had its windows smashed and rooms fire-bombed shortly before dawn, as the family slept, the military and witnesses said. Graffiti in Hebrew, reading ‘revenge’, was scrawled outside.

Both the child’s parents and his four-year-old brother were badly hurt. They were taken by helicopter for treatment in an Israeli hospital, officials said. A second house in the village was also set ablaze, but no-one was at home.

Horrific day in Palestine WestBank an Israeli settler sat house of this 1 month old baby on fire, baby burned 2 death pic.twitter.com/vZ6ySiyfcz

— Bassem (@BBassem7) July 31, 2015

This was the worst attack by Israeli assailants since a Palestinian teenager was torched to death in Jerusalem a year ago. That followed the kidnapping and killing of three Israeli teenagers, by Palestinian militants, in the West Bank.

The Israeli military boosted forces in the area to search for the suspects, described by a spokesman as “two masked terrorists”, and to prevent any escalation in violence. The Palestinian Islamist group, Hamas, called for revenge.

Ibrahim Dawabsheh, a Duma resident, said he heard people shouting for help from the house and rushed to it. “I saw two masked men outside,” he said. He went to get help and when he returned they had gone.

“We found the parents outside with burns. They said there was another son in the house. We brought him out and then they said there was another boy inside, but we couldn’t reach the bedroom, because of the fire. He was left inside until rescue forces came,” Dawabsheh said.

Pictures circulated by Palestinian media on the internet showed a smiling, chubby-faced boy, named as Ali Dawabsheh. Footage from the house showed blackened walls, and singed family photos scattered across charred belongings.

1 y/o Palestinian baby reported killed this morning in West Bank after Jewish extremists set house on fire overnight. pic.twitter.com/Yb8MeUpHnr

— Israel Breaking (@IsraelBreaking) July 31, 2015

Netanyahu said he was shocked and promised that “all means” would be used to bring the assailants to justice.

“This is a terrorist attack. Israel takes firm action against terrorism, no matter who its perpetrators are,” he said.

I am shocked by the murder of Ali Dawabshe. This is a reprehensible and horrific act of terrorism in every respect. pic.twitter.com/m9JXsk7YHg

— Benjamin Netanyahu - בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) July 31, 2015

Part of Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition is the ultranationalist Jewish Home party, which advocates more settlements and settler rights in the West Bank. Jewish Home leader, Naftali Bennett, denounced the attack, but Palestinians accused the party of laying the ground for it.

Israeli military spokesman, Lieutenant-Colonel Peter Lerner, said an investigation was underway and called the arson “nothing short of a barbaric act of terrorism”.

This attack against Palestinian civilians is a barbaric act of terrorism. #IDF has heightened efforts to locate terroists responsible #Duma

— Lt. Col. (R) Peter Lerner (@LTCPeterLerner) July 31, 2015