TELL, West Bank: Israeli settlers vandalized a mosque in the Israeli-occupied West Bank early Monday, spray-painting offensive phrases and setting a fire, according to the Palestinian Authority’s Ministry of Religious Affairs Ministry.
Worshippers coming for the first prayers of the day found the damage and a still smoldering fire, which spewed black smoke across the entrance of the Abu Bakr Al-Siddiq Mosque in the town of Tell, near Nablus, and stained the ornate doorway.
“I was shocked when I opened the door,” said Munir Ramdan, who lives near the mosque. “The fire had been burning here in the area, the glass was broken here, and the door was broken.”
Security camera footage shows two people walking toward the mosque carrying gasoline and a can of spray paint, and running away a few minutes later, Ramdan said.
The Religious Affairs Ministry said that settlers vandalized or attacked 45 mosques in the West Bank last year. The incident came as Muslims observe the holy month of Ramadan.
